Divorce can be costly, so taking measures to reduce expenses is crucial.
Prepare for meetings with your lawyer by gathering relevant documentation – for instance recent pay stubs, year-end W2 statements and any other financial documents relevant to your case are important items.
Know Your Rights
One of the key components of any successful divorce is understanding your rights and taking appropriate steps to safeguard them. Documents including pay stubs, year-end W2 statements, bank statements (both joint and individual), tax returns, insurance documents such as homeowner’s, car, life and credit card policies as well as any others related to your case will make for a much smoother experience.
At this stage, it is also wise to begin compiling lists of personal belongings you wish to retain and property that needs to be sold or transferred, so your attorney can assess an accurate market value for all of your assets. In addition, opening new savings and checking accounts under your name will help prevent issues with sharing expenses or paying off joint debts more smoothly.
Communicate Openly
Your attorney and you need to communicate openly and honestly; however, don’t overshare! He or she is not there as an adviser; excessive venting could prevent effective communication from taking place.
Make sure that your lawyer understands any fears you have, such as losing custody. By doing this, she will be better equipped to create an approach which can maximize its success for you.
Be sure to schedule meetings face-to-face, with someone present to translate, should necessary. This will enable you to effectively convey your concerns while also seeing how a lawyer responds and takes them seriously; otherwise it may be time for an alternative attorney.
Keep Your Cool
At times of high emotion during divorce settlement talks, it can be easy to lose your composure. Therefore, it is crucial that you try and remain calm during these discussions in order to keep a level head and avoid making decisions that could hurt or confuse negotiations – for example failing to pay bills that could damage credit, or forgetting an important property question while creating your Statement of Property drafts.
Keep a relaxed state of mind to help speed up the divorce proceedings for you and your children’s sake. This is both advantageous to them as well as you.
As part of your divorce proceedings, finding support in the form of friends and family that understand your circumstances and can offer sympathy or tangible assistance (like housing or childcare) may be of great assistance. Consulting a counselor or attending support groups may also prove beneficial; staying active and getting enough sleep are also keys to emotional resilience.
Hire an Attorney
If you have a contested divorce and wish to ensure that your best interests are represented, it is crucial that you hire an attorney. Gather all relevant documentation prior to meeting with the lawyer – this includes pay stubs from both you and your spouse, year-end W2 statements, copies of tax returns filed, expenses related to children’s extracurricular activities, child or spousal support payments and debts you want addressed during this process.
Hiring an experienced attorney provides you with a fierce advocate and someone to protect your legal rights during the divorce process. Due to strict deadlines, an experienced lawyer knows exactly which documents need to be filed with whom, by when, and why – any missed deadline can lead to added stress and expense; an experienced lawyer will make sure all paperwork is submitted on time in accordance with legal standards.