The question will come to your mind on how you are going to find a good lawyer when you are faced with a divorce. It is only with the right lawyer you will be able to achieve the desired outcome for your divorce lawsuit. There are many different family lawyers and you need to shop carefully to choose one that is the right fit for your situation.
Firstly, you must decide the type of legal service you need. There is no need to hire high profile family law attorneys for a simple divorce case that does not involve any asset or children. This type of divorce only needs a short consultation session with the lawyer. On the other hand, if your divorce involves more complicated issues like abuse, quarrels on division of assets, investigation on your partner, then it makes sense to hire a divorce lawyer that charges a few hundred dollars per hour.
You need to make sure that the attorney specializes in a relevant area of family law. For example, if the case involves physical abuse, you will want a lawyer that knows what to do to protect you from your abusive spouse. If the divorce involves a lot of marital assets, you should choose a lawyer that specializes in high value divorce. Hiring a lawyer that specializes in child custody cases is recommended if you and your spouse are fighting over the children or you can foresee that there will be a nasty custodial fight.
You will want to choose a local attorney so that you can easily schedule an appointment with him. Local attorney is more familiar with the laws and regulations, local judges, and officials in the local courtroom. Some lawyers are licensed to operate in more than one jurisdiction. However, they can be hard to contact since their office is not in the neighborhood. You can only talk to the lawyer on the phone. If you want to make an appointment, you will have to pay for travel fees which add to the legal cost.
As a rule of thumb, you should always consult with 2 – 3 lawyers prior to making a decision. The initial consultation is the best time for asking questions like cost, familiarity in opposing counsel, who will be in charge of your case, bill payment, and the best time to contact the lawyer when necessary. Testing the lawyer with questions is the best way to find out whether he is completely honest. With the answers you get from the lawyer you interview, you can go about doing your own research and see whether what he says is true.
A good lawyer will be able to get along with you without any problem. During the meeting, you should ask yourself if you enjoy meeting with him. This is important since you will be discussing your private matters about your divorce situation with him. It is not necessary to become good friends with the lawyer but you must be able to get along with the lawyer. If the lawyer is pressuring you to retain him, you should look somewhere else for another lawyer.