Do I need a Lawyer?

Asking whether you should hire a divorce lawyer when going through a divorce is kind of like asking whether you should go to the hospital when you have chest pains. The answer is always: yeah it’s probably a good idea, but it depends (and it will cost a lot). Sticking with the medical analogy, think about what you would do if you had chest pains and whether you would run off to the ER right away, or maybe wait and see. The chest pains could mean so many different things: indigestion, anxiety, ulcer, allergy, and of course, maybe a heart attack. Obviously, some of those things are worse than others, and some of them would warrant going to the hospital, whereas others do not. However, if you’re having a heart attack, or something equally as bad, it’s better to get medical attention sooner rather than later.

Similarly, going through a divorce in and of itself will have you questioning whether you should hire a divorce lawyer right away, or wait and see. If you’ve read my other article on the cost of a divorce, you’ll get a sense for how expensive a divorce and divorce lawyer can be. So, if you’re going to pony up all that dough, it should make sense from a financial, or at least, a life perspective before parting with your hard-earned cash (or someone else’s if you’re borrowing it). Also similar to the medical analogy, depending on what you’re going to be dealing with in the divorce, it’s better to see a divorce lawyer sooner rather than later, if you’re going to do it.

In this article, I’ll cover some fairly common scenarios that typically warrant hiring a divorce lawyer, or at least going to see one for a consult right away.

Lawyers Can Really Help SMB

First, the small business owner.  Small business owners (SMB owners), including professionals, unfortunately have some of the most complicated and costly issues in a divorce.  Most SMB owners started their business during the marriage, or worked to build them up during the marriage. This means that the SMB is either community property (most likely), or has community property value (called a community lien). In order for the SMB to keep the business, he or she must essentially “buy out” the other spouse’s community share in the business. This means the business must be valued–most often by a very particular specialist who will become an expert witness. For anyone who has bought a used car before, you know how difficult it can be to negotiate when you don’t know much about cars. Now imagine trying to argue with a business valuation expert without the help of an attorney, or arguing the value of your business to the Court without the help of either.

Spousal Maintenance Needs

Next, people who may owe, or are entitled to receive, spousal maintenance. Spousal maintenance is often one of the more litigated issues because there is no specific formula for the courts to use and reasonable minds can disagree. Most judges will readily acknowledge that if you give 10 different judges the same set of facts on a spousal maintenance issue you can get 10 different spousal maintenance rulings. As a result, people are more ready to roll the dice and take a chance on getting more (or paying less) spousal maintenance. Because of the higher risks, and higher amounts generally at issue in a spousal maintenance case, help and guidance from an attorney can really pay off–including keeping you out of court if it behooves you to settle.

Dealing with a Prenup

Third, anyone with a prenup. A prenup (prenuptial or premarital agreement), if you have one, is a contract that you entered into shortly before getting married, and which became effective upon your marriage. A prenup, like any contact, can vary widely in complexity. Some prenups are very simple and do nothing more than to document each spouse’s separate property he/she took into the marriage. Others can be highly complex and have various formulas or provisions for divorce issues, such as spousal maintenance payments (or waivers), property division, eliminating community property, and attorney’s fees to fight the prenup. If you have a prenup, then it will be important to have a lawyer help you understand your rights and obligations in the prenup that are triggered upon a divorce.  

Lastly, people who have very difficult “custody” issues to address. Custody refers to legal decision-making and parenting time. A difficult custody case is one that deals with real dangers to the children (such as drugs, alcohol abuse, etc.), special needs children, and/or significant domestic violence that has impacted the children. These types of cases include significant issues that can have life-long impacts on your children. Although there may not be any money at stake, it is difficult to put a price on your kids. Thus, any type of case where your rights to your children and/or the safety of your children is legitimately at risk, seeking the counsel of an attorney can be very useful.

Food for Thought

These are but a few issues that should cause you to think seriously about hiring a divorce lawyer. At the end of the day, you have to weigh the risks and rewards of hiring a divorce lawyer. Lawyers are not magicians. However, they can be incredibly useful resources to help you understand where you stand and to effectively advocate for you if you need help. Whether or not you hire a lawyer will largely depend on whether you can even afford one. That being said, the cost of having a consultation with a lawyer is relatively low and can be very useful to at least help you know what you will be dealing with, and give greater insight as to how much you will benefit from hiring a lawyer. In upcoming posts I’ll cover how you can best prepare for a consultation, and what questions you should be asking any lawyer before hiring him/her.  

For those in the majority of people who simply cannot afford a lawyer, take a look at our online divorce courses to get yourself ready to protect your interests in your divorce.  Our online courses can also help you have a more effective consultation with a lawyer because you’ll be educated already on the basic issues and can spend more time strategizing and analyzing your particular situation.