Ending a marriage often comes with a number of questions for both spouses. Among the most common is if you need a divorce lawyer.
While hiring a divorce lawyer may set your mind at ease and help you understand your options, not all divorcing couples choose to hire one. It really is dependent on your own situation and what makes the most sense.
But if protection and being awarded certain assets and custody, then involving an attorney would certainly make sense.
The truth is, the less that courts need to get involved, the more smoothly the divorce will be. With that being said, do you need a divorce lawyer?
Let’s dive in.
When You May Not Need a Divorce Lawyer
The only time this would be advisable is if you and your spouse are able to work together. Usually this will involving coming to mutual agreements on issues involving assets and other property as well as child custody and child support. When you and your spouse can legally agree to these things on your own, then you may not need a divorce lawyer.
You could even save money in the long run and have more control on the outcome of these issues that need to be determined in your divorce. While atypical, some couples are actually able to work out matters on their own. When they are, this helps put less stress on the whole situation as well as the children if any are involved.
In the event, that your divorce is no longer uncontested, hiring a divorce lawyer is absolutely in your best interest.
But if you are interested in filing for divorce in San Antonio on your own without any attorney, this article will tell you how to step by step.
However, even without an attorney it may be beneficial to use a mediator to act as a third party to help resolve these issues.
Divorce Mediation
In a divorce mediation, the mediator is not advocating for either side. Rather, they are more interested in the facts in effort to come to a resolution between the divorcing spouses.
In addition, going through divorce mediation can alleviate the need to go to court as well as speed up the process. This is large in part because there is no delay in communication between attorneys.
When Divorce Gets Ugly
Divorce is unpleasant. There’s really no way around that. More often than not, high emotions are involved and at times, things can get ugly. Fighting, threatening to leave with the kids, etc. If it it ever gets to this point, hiring a San Antonio divorce attorney is what is going to help you.
Your attorney can help you establish certain orders that will limit what your spouse can and cannot do legally. But before you decide to hire the first lawyer that you come across online, be sure you hire the right one.
This is an emotional time in your life. It may feel like you just want to get it over with, but working with the wrong legal counsel can actually backfire in the long run. This is because some attorneys will want to fight the other side, just to give you the most they can from the divorce. While this sounds practical, sometimes that may not be what you want as a client.
So be sure to look for a lawyer that will actually listen to your needs and concerns. This way, they can help you achieve what it is you really want from your divorce. And when children are involved, you certainly want legal counsel on your side to help with custody and child support negotiations.
Ask questions. What are my options? Do you have vast experience working on cases like mine? What are the possible outcomes? These are all perfectly good examples of questions to ask.
At the end of the day, you want to work with someone that you trust, feel comfortable with and know has your best interests in mind.
When You May Need a Divorce Lawyer in San Antonio
Sometimes it makes complete sense to hire a divorce lawyer in San Antonio. A good rule of thumb is if you have uncertainty or are worried for any reason, make the hire. They can at least put your mind at ease and help you understand your options.
Also, if there has been any abuse of any sort to you or your children, certainly hire an attorney. You’ll want to also get a temporary restraining order right way to keep you and your children safe.
When children are involved it may also be a good idea to at least consult with a lawyer. This way you can ask about any custody or support questions. In addition, if there are high assets involved such as property or complicated financial situations, you’ll want to be protected. So it may make sense to seek legal counsel at this point.
Even if you feel you cannot financially afford to hire a divorce lawyer, look for one that offers free consultations. At the very least, a consultation can offer solutions and a plan that can help you moving forward. Often lawyers will offer payment plans if attorneys fees cannot be afforded up front.
If You Hire an Attorney, Hire Your Own
This goes without saying, but having both spouses working with the same attorney can create a real conflict of interest.
You may both be tempted to use the “family attorney”. But the moment that there is any disagreement on issues, this is a situation that can quickly escalate and create conflict for your attorney because they would representing both sides.
Because of this, there are ethical issues that can come about as a result of an attorney trying to represent both spouses.
So our suggestion is that if you are going to hire a divorce lawyer, hire a different one than your spouse. If you have not hired an attorney and your spouse already has, you’ll certainly want to hire one of your own to communicate with the other attorney on your behalf.
Do You Need a Divorce Lawyer in San Antonio?
Many times we find that people who are on the fence and asking themselves, “do I need a divorce lawyer?” they often do. And rightfully so. You’re concerned about your assets, children and well-being perhaps. You should do everything within your power to help protect what is important to you. Hiring a divorce lawyer is one of those things.
So if you are facing divorce and unsure of your next steps, we encourage you to contact us. We are here to help see you through.
