Divorce is an emotional process, especially if you are going through it for the first time. There are many different aspects to consider when filing for divorce, including property division, child custody, alimony, and spousal support. You will need to hire a lawyer to help you navigate through each aspect of the legal process. Your lawyer should be able to advise you on whether or not you should file for a prenuptial agreement, mediation, or litigation. If you choose to go down the litigation route, you will need to prepare yourself mentally and physically for the long-term process ahead. An experienced attorney in Harris County, Galveston County, Fort Bend County, Montgomery County, Brazoria County, Houston, Sugar Land, Missouri City, and Stafford, Texas at Thornton Esquire Law Group, PLLC, will be able to guide you throughout the entire process and provide you with the best advice available to ensure that you get what you deserve. Contact us today at www.thorntonesquirelawgroup.com for a free consultation.
Read and reread any letters you receive from your lawyer. If there is something that you don't understand or you feel like you need clarification on, then ask your lawyer. You may not remember everything that was said during a conversation, but you will certainly remember when you received a letter from your lawyer.
Ask questions. Don't just blindly follow what your lawyer says. There is nothing wrong with asking questions. Your lawyer should always be willing to answer your questions. If you have questions about the law, your lawyer should be happy to explain them to you.
You need to provide your schedule to your lawyer. Your lawyer needs to know when you won’t be available. Even though you may have your own life and obligations, your lawyer should be aware of any big projects or events that might interfere with your ability to focus on the divorce. You don’t want to be surprised by something like a car accident or emergency surgery. Make sure your lawyer knows if there is anything else going on in your life that could affect your ability to focus on your divorce.
Be Responsive: When you and your spouse are going through a divorce, it is important to keep in mind that there may come a time when you are unable to respond immediately to messages from your lawyer. If you are not available at all times during the legal proceedings, your lawyer might have to contact you via phone or text message. While this may seem like a hassle, it is actually very helpful because it allows your lawyer to get answers to their questions quickly. Your lawyer should always try to provide you with a complete answer to any question they may have. By doing this, they will not have to ask you the same question repeatedly. This will help them save money and time.
Be transparent. Remember that your lawyer isn’t just there to give legal advice. It’s his job to help you understand what’s going on, and he/she needs to know everything about your situation. If you need to tell him/her something that might be embarrassing, he/she needs to know about it. He/she may ask you to provide documentation or may even suggest that you get it yourself. But he/she won’t judge you for telling him/her anything at all. So if you’re worried about something, please talk to your lawyer about it.
It is important to keep your attorney informed about any ongoing issues that may arise during the divorce process. Sometimes, problems can be resolved quickly via a simple letter or phone call, and however, if there is an ongoing issue that needs court intervention, it is best if your attorney is already made aware of the issue. If an attorney knows about an ongoing issue before it becomes a problem, then he/she will not need to waste time and energy trying to figure out what happened. Instead, he/she can focus his/her attention on resolving the problem instead.
It is important to recognize and understand that the advice legal counsel gives you is just. Your legal counsel works for you and is here to provide you with insight into the law and how your cases could be resolved. The very best way for you and your legal counsel to make strategic decisions about the law and how your situation should be handled is for you to understand his explanations about the current law and how it could impact your case. When a lawyer explains the law to you, he/she is not making personal judgments on you, your marriage, or your children but advising you about your options under the current laws. Accept that your legal counsel is looking out for your interests, and sometimes that means giving you information that you might not want to hear. Remember that your legal counsel is there to guide you throughout this process and to be your advocate.
Regardless of the issues in your divorce, it is always a great idea to keep a journal. Whether you write about the events that are happening or just record important dates, it is your daily life, so no one can monitor it better than you can. Keeping a journal is also a great way to document important events and to collect relevant documents, such as text messages or emails, that demonstrate what is happening. It is easy for you to keep track of these events and compile relevant information. Even though you may not need legal advice at this point, it is still beneficial to keep a journal of important events. These journals can then be used to demonstrate the issues that keep occurring and how frequently these issues occur. For example, if there are frequent disagreements over parenting time, it is good to note down when those disagreements happened and who was involved. If there are frequent disputes over money, it is good to record when those payments were made and who made them. The journal of events can be provided to your lawyer so he or she can advocate for you and help resolve the issues.
Hopefully, you've found these tips helpful in navigating the divorce landscape and avoiding making some of the all too common mistakes made by parties in divorce proceedings. If you need the assistance of an experienced divorce attorney, know that a divorce attorney is there to help and discuss any issues you may have with you.