Divorce: Step 2

                                             Divorce: Step 2

If you haven't read my Divorce: Step 1 post, check it out here .

At the same time I was doing that step 1, I was researching Lawyers.

My steps to finding a -hopefully- good lawyer:

1) Ask around for recommendations.

• Divorced Friends that you trust
• Divorced Associates that you trust
• Divorced People at work that you trust
• Divorced Family members that you trust.
• People in the "legal world" that you are friends with and trust.

Notice that I kept saying "That you trust." If you don't want someone to spread the word that you are looking for a divorce, then don't ask someone that will go around spreading the word.

2) Look at your local Bar website (Not that bar, the Bar association. Silly.) Sometimes the Bar has a search engine where you can search for a specific type of lawyer.

3) If your case has a specific issue that you want a lawyer to have had experience with, call the experts in that field to ask them for recommendations. Maybe there is a lawyer who has the perfect background to handle your case?

4) When you have no other resources, do a good ol' internet search.

5) Once you have a lawyer or two or five in mind, look up the online reviews for that person. Keep in mind that a lot of people don't review something online unless they are mad. On the flip side, lots of companies, lawyers included, will ask their best customers to review them. Whatever the case is, reading reviews will give you a basic idea of that lawyer. Hopefully.

6) Compile a list of these lawyers (if you have more than 1 you are interested in), including their address, phone numbers, and any notes you have on them.

Note: I have always had a lawyer, and it has benefited me immensely. However, there are also legal aid options and pro bono options sometimes that you may find worth your time. These wouldn't work for my case, but they may work for your case.

Next time, Step 3!

Divorce: Step 1

                                              Divorce: Step1

The first thing I did after deciding to get a divorce was write down my "story." I also made sure I was keeping logs of everything going on.

Why write down your story? It feels like you will always remember everything about the time leading up to the divorce, but you'll be surprised at what you will quickly forget. 

But I didn't just write down my whole story, I wrote down the most important parts of the story that applied to 1) why I was getting a divorce, 2) things that might affect child custody and visitation, and 3) anything else you think might affect the court case.

I thought of this as my statement. I could take it to meet with and interview lawyers so that I could reference it, etc.

Again, it feels like you'll never need this. But believe me, you will. When the lawyer asks something like, "Well which came first: his acting out or his purchase of that merchandise?" (totally made up example) But you won't want to have to sit there debating over the timeline of your case. Having your story written out (maybe even put on a timeline) could help.

(Note: At this same time I was researching lawyers, but I will get to that in another post)