Dallas Divorce Law Blog by Michelle O'Neil

Divorce can be a complex process that affects just about every aspect of your life, from financial to emotional, physical to legal.  Unless you have been married a short time and have no property, assets or kids, your divorce may be more complicated than you expect.  The central figure in your divorce (besides the obvious you, your spouse and kids) is your lawyer and her staff.  But assembling the best team to assist you through the process can help achieve your goals for the divorce more efficiently.

Financial planners (here’s one) can be useful in helping prepare budgets and examine the cash flow needed after divorce.  Accountants (here’s one) can help with tracing assets for characterizing as community or separate property and valuing business assets.  A therapist can help you with the emotional turmoil of divorce.  A litigation coach can help you navigate the waters of testifying and making strategic decisions.  Sometimes private investigators (check this out) are necessary to discover certain information.  And, forensic computer specialists may be useful to trace information contained on a hard drive.

Experienced family lawyers are familiar with the experts in these fields and can assemble the right team for your case.  If you are in need of a team that specializes in divorce, please contact us.

The outcome of your divorce proceedings will change the course of your life forever; so invest the time and money to find the lawyer who will do the best job for you.  Here are some suggested questions to ask during your initial interview:

• Do you practice family law exclusively? What percentage of your practice is family law?
• What is your retainer? Is this fee refundale?  What is your hourly rate?
• What is your billing technique?
• Approximately how much will my divorce cost?  Your lawyer can only provide you a general idea of costs based on the information you provide and a guess about how amicable the process will be.  Even if you think your case is simple, but the other side makes it unnecessarily complicated, you can expect your costs to increase.
• What do you think the outcome will be?  Remember you are looking for an honest assessment, not necessarily what will make you happiest.
• If you spouse has retained an attorney, ask your prospective lawyer what she knows about this attorney. Have you worked with her before? Do you think she will work to settle?
• What percentage of your cases go to trial?  You actually want to choose a lawyer with a balance of settled cases versus trials.  Do not choose a lawyer that tries too many cases because that shows a lack of willingness to settle and will be more costly for you in the long run.
• How long will the process take?  Again, the best this can be is an approximation.
• What are my rights and obligations during this process?
• Will you actually handle my case or will someone else in your firm be responsible for my case?
• Should I consider mediation?
• What information will you need from me?
• What happens next?