questions to ask when calling divorce attorney

What to ask for during a divorce?

5 Things To Make Sure Are Included In Your Divorce SettlementA detailed parenting-time schedule—including holidays! ... Specifics about support. ... Life insurance. ... Retirement accounts and how they will be divided. ... A plan for the sale of the house.Sep 14, 2017

How do you start a conversation with a divorce lawyer?

10 things to bring to your initial consultation with a divorce...Prepare your Schedule of Assets and Debts. ... Prepare your Income and Expense Declaration. ... Prepare a list of questions you want to ask the divorce lawyer. ... Tax Returns. ... Self-employment documents. ... List out the relevant facts about your case.More items...•Feb 5, 2017

What does a divorce lawyer do?

A divorce lawyer, or divorce attorney, is a legal professional who practices family law and ensures the protection of clients' rights during legal separations, divorces and custody cases. Divorce lawyers often work for family law firms and specialize in the legal filing, division of assets and aspects of child custody.May 20, 2021

What is the goal of hiring an attorney?

For many women, the ‘goal’ of hiring an attorney may simply be “get me outta this marriage!” But honing in on what you want your life to look like after the divorce dust has settled can be a useful tool for identifying how you want to work through the process of ending your marriage.

Can you represent yourself in divorce?

Most states allow individuals to represent themselves in the divorce process. And, it’s more common than you think: 80 percent of divorces involve at least one party representing themselves. Lots of people go this route – which means you can, too.

Is it a good idea to talk to a lawyer about divorce?

If you’ve made up your mind and there’s no alternative but divorce, talking to at least a few lawyers is always a good idea. The first consultation is usually always free, so you’ve got nothing to lose. But, you can gain a lot of information during attorney interviews if you head into the conversation armed with the right questions.

Questions About Experience

The issues that need to be addressed in your divorce are ones that will affect you and your family for years to come. When asking your divorce interview questions, it is important to learn whether your family law attorney has the experience necessary to advise you correctly.

Questions About Billing

Questions about billing are definitely important questions to ask an attorney about your divorce case. If you’re concerned about keeping costs down, you will want to understand your attorney’s billing practices. Here are a few questions that will cover the basics:

Questions About Communication

When you are going through a divorce, you will probably have many questions for your divorce attorney.

Questions About Procedures and Law

For many people, going through a divorce may be their first real experience with the legal system. You may feel a bit overwhelmed by the process or concerned about what the laws mean for you.

How to Find a Divorce Attorney

Are you ready to start interviewing divorce attorneys? You might want to start with the experienced family law attorneys at Eskew Law. We pride ourselves on excellent communication with our clients and favorable results.

How long have you practiced divorce law?

The experience of your attorney matters a lot when it comes to your divorce. There are some cases where the spouses separate amicably and negotiate all the issues among themselves.

How often should we communicate about the case?

Your communication frequency will depend upon how complex your case is. The more challenging the divorce issues, the more communication is needed. Typical divorce cases may require communication one to four times a month. Complex cases, however, may require communication way more times than that.

What sort of communication should I have with my spouse about the divorce?

The communication between the client and an attorney is confidential and should not be disclosed to the third party. Information in the wrong hands can undermine your case and make it that much harder to have a successful case.

How much will a divorce cost?

Although the exact number can be impossible to estimate, a knowledgeable family lawyer is able to give you a ballpark estimate on how much your divorce can cost and what are the unpredictable variances that can increase or decrease the cost. Typically, hourly rates of a lawyer cost between $150 and $350.

Will I get spousal support or child support after the divorce?

Spousal support, also known as alimony, is financial assistance provided to a spouse after a divorce. In Colorado, there are legal mechanisms to protect both spouses and one such mechanism is to provide financial support to a spouse who does not earn enough to support themselves. This is in case you earn substantially more than your spouse.

How will it be decided who gets custody of our children?

Our attorneys should be able to explain to you exactly what legal custody of your child is, the difference between joint custody and sole custody, and which you are entitled to.

Who should move out of our family home?

Moving out of the home or staying is a personal decision but in many cases, we will advise you whether living together or separately will affect your divorce case. There are many situations like domestic violence, the potential for false allegations of domestic violence, physical abuse of the children, etc.

What is family law?

However, family law is a subspecialty that involves complex legal principles, which take time and experience to master.

What is a restraining order?

restraining orders prohibiting spouses from changing beneficiary designations or transferring assets before and during the divorce. alimony (how to calculate income available for alimony and the special factors courts consider when determining setting payments) child support (how to calculate child support in your state)

What is the division of property and assets?

the division of property and assets, including real property, collectibles, venture capital interests, stock option portfolios, good will, or other business interests, and . the division of retirement benefits. There is a vast body of law (which will vary from state to state) that applies to these issues. These laws are frequently updated ...

How to prepare for alimony?

Alimony is a numbers game. Sometimes the best way to prepare and present the back alimony case is to play the numbers game using experts. For example, forensic accounting experts and vocational rehabilitative experts can help support or defend an alimony claim.

Who wrote the book "Getting to Yes"?

Have you read “Getting to Yes”? “Getting to Yes,” a book by the authors of the Harvard Negotiation Project, is considered the authority on principled settlement. These guys originated the concept of win-win, later made famous by Stephen Covey and his “7 Habits of Highly Effective People.”.

Is divorce easy?

Divorce is not easy , and the vast majority of the people that we consult with are not emotionally ready to pull the trigger. Often a driving force is that there are assets, other financial obligations, or even relationships with children that need to be protected, and the jurisdiction of the court needs to be invoked.

Is Florida a legal separation state?

While Florida doesn’t exactly call it a legal separation, the state does offer an alternative for two parties to divide assets and to provide support to one another even without filing a divorce. The separate maintenance actions can give rise to what is in effect a legal separation in Florida.

Is child support based on a formula?

Child support is based on a formula in Florida . But often we have a difficult time getting to a child support number. That’s because while the formula might be straightforward, sometimes finding out the numbers to put into the formula is anything but. My spouse has a business and lies about his income to the IRS.

Do cases go to litigation?

The reality is certain cases must go to litigation in order to get the right result. You are vetting not just the transactional experience of your family law attorney, but also their ability to litigate if and when it is required.

Experience

How long have you been practicing law? Do you practice only family law?

Process and Timing

Do you think it is better to settle my case or litigate (go to court)?

Assets and Debts

How do the state laws determine how we divide our joint assets? Is it always 50/50?

Alimony (spousal support)

Am I eligible to receive alimony payments? Do I have to pay alimony to my ex-spouse?

The Bottom Line

You might not have the opportunity to ask all these questions at your initial divorce consultations. Pick the ones that are most relevant to your situation.