When you and your spouse are considering an amicable divorce, you may believe that the two of you can settle the whole thing on your own and just file the paperwork with the court. While it's true that you may be able to settle the divorce without the support of an attorney, it's often in everyone's best interest to retain one anyway. Here are a few things the attorney will help with.
Settling a Custody Agreement
Child custody is frequently difficult to settle, even with an amicable divorce. It's easier if you're both on the same page from the beginning, but it isn't unheard of for one parent to change their mind along the way and want more visitation or full custody despite the agreement. When you have a divorce attorney on retainer to help you, he or she can serve as a mediator to help you both discuss the arrangement and determine the best thing for your kids.
A divorce attorney can help you explore details that you might not otherwise be aware of, including clauses that prevent the custodial parent from moving the kids to another state without approval. You can also stipulate transportation requirements, such as the visiting parent must pick up and drop off the kids every time. Another great benefit of having an attorney to support you is that he or she can create a legal document detailing who has the authority to take the kids out of school and on what grounds they can do so.
Separation of Assets and Marital Finances
Even when you and your soon-to-be ex agree on everything else, settling your finances and dividing your assets may be a tumultuous process. You'll have to mutually decide how to split the money in your bank accounts, investments and other financial accounts. If there are any legal requirements for other payments, like child support or alimony, having an attorney present can help you negotiate that together without any hurt feelings, pride or other problems influencing the process.
Filing your divorce uncontested can save you money on the divorce itself, but it can prove to be costly for you both emotionally and financially in the long run. With the information presented here, you can see that there are some advantages to hiring a divorce attorney, like the Law Office of Kristine A. Michael, P.C., even if you are both in agreement about the divorce in general. It can even help to speed up the court proceedings, because there will be no question about the accuracy of the information in the application.
Share21 September 2015
When I started my first small business, I had no idea how much I really didn’t know. I was fully prepared to deal with customers, sell product and even handle complaints and returns. What I wasn’t aware of was that there is so much more to it. I was lacking the legal expertise to protect the company and myself. I wanted others to benefit from my experience, mistakes and lessons learned, so I started this blog. From employment law to the legal business contracts you’ll have to sign when you form partnerships, business law is complex. I hope that the information here will help you to be better prepared when you start your business so that you’ll know when you need to call an attorney and when you can handle things yourself.
