Divorce and Custody Battles: 5 Things to Look for in a Family Lawyer
by Joan Bradley
Going through divorce and custody battles can be one of the most difficult, stressful, and confusing things an individual must go through. Most people do not have any experience with this process and need to hire an expert to guide them. But who do you choose?
Choosing the right family lawyer to handle your divorce or custody battle not only makes a big difference in the outcome of your case, but also determines how good or bad the process will be in terms of stress, cost, and length of time. Some people even have to change attorneys during the process because it doesn't go like they planned. If you can manage to choose the right attorney at the start, things will go much better. Looking for the following five things in a family lawyer will get you off to a good start.
- Make sure they have experience. Choose an attorney with lots of experience in family law. In some states, attorneys can be board-certified in family law, which means they have significant trial experience, they have passed a special test, and they receive continuing education on family law.
- Make sure they have the right skills. If your divorce is heavily contested, you will want someone with lots of trial experience, and not all lawyers have that. However, you can't expect a big-time trial lawyer to be emotionally supportive or communicate closely with you since they handle lots of big cases. Most cases don't go to court, and if you'd like someone who is going to be emotionally supportive during the process, you should make sure you find that kind of attorney up front.
- Make sure they know the local judges. Choose a family lawyer who is familiar with judges in your jurisdiction. Knowing how they've ruled in previous cases as well as understanding their courtroom style and habits, will help your attorney win the case.
- Make sure they are affordable. Attorney fees vary by location, and experience and can be quite expensive. Most lawyers bill hourly because no one can know the outcome, and those hours can add up. If you don't have a lot of liquid assets, don't choose a large family law firm, as they may have trouble scaling down their services for a small divorce. A smaller firm or novice attorney will be willing to work harder to win your case to build up their practice .
- Make sure they reflect your personal style. Your attorney should share your overall attitude toward your divorce. You will likely be sharing very personal details with them. Not only do you need to make sure you can trust and feel comfortable with them, but you also need to be sure they will behave in a manner that is consistent with your expectations. For example, if you want someone calm and cooperative, don't choose someone aggressive or manipulative to help your case.
Following these five steps will help you make the right choice about selecting a family lawyer, such as Jeffery Associates. Divorce and custody battles are difficult and confusing, but finding someone with the right skills, experience, and attitude will make the process much easier to handle.
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About Me
You walk into your favorite grocery store and right away, you slip and fall only to sprain your ankle. You can't perform your job because it requires standing on your feet all day, which means that you can't make any money to support your family while your ankle heals. There was no warning that the floors were wet after being cleaned in the store – so what do you do? It's probably a good idea to think about filing a personal injury lawsuit. Of course, anyone with experience with a personal injury case will tell you just how important it is to work with an attorney throughout the process. I'd like to share insight I've learned through three personal injury cases that I myself have had to go through in the past. I think the information on this website can help people like you, who need some personal injury guidance.