Divorce proceedings are often highly contentious, and they are so costly because they can take such a long time to complete. If both parties hire an attorney, they reduce the likelihood that they will be in a situation where the divorce never ends. You may even have circumstances where you need to hire an attorney even more than other people, and these situations include the following:
1. Your Spouse Is Not Telling the Truth
When you are in a court of law, you must swear to tell the truth. After doing so, the judge declares that you are “under oath.” If your spouse lied in court documents or under oath, you must provide evidence of this, and your attorney can help you present this proof to the judge. Once you prove that your spouse lied, the judge may turn the matter over to law enforcement authorities. The crime would be “perjury,” and it could lead to a contempt of court charge and a fine or a jail sentence.
2. Your Spouse Hired His or Her Own Attorney
Sometimes, one spouse will state that they only need to hire one attorney. In this case, it would be your spouse’s attorney and not necessarily your attorney. You must hire your own attorney because your attorney will only work in your best interests. It may not be possible to share an attorney because many states have laws against attorneys representing people with conflicting interests. So, plan to hire your own attorney even though you and your spouse are in an amicable divorce.
3. The Two of You Share Children
It is important to hire an attorney if you and your spouse are in disagreement about custody, child support, or anything having to do with the children. If you disagree in court, the judge may make the decisions for you, but it would benefit you to have your attorney who will represent your interests. An attorney is necessary if you are fighting for custody, you are asking for child support, your child’s other parent has a lawyer, or the case is especially complicated.
4. The Financial Issues Are Complicated
If you and your spouse have considerable assets to divide, you must make sure that you have your own divorce attorney. The main reason this is true is that spouses can go to great lengths to hide assets, but if you have an experienced attorney on your side, you will have someone who knows how to find these assets.
Sometimes, one spouse offers gifts to friends or family members, but they have an agreement that states that the recipient will return these gifts after the divorce is over. An experienced attorney knows how to uncover this type of sneaky tactic, so hiring your own attorney can only benefit you in these situations.
5. Your Attorney Makes Sure That You Have the Appropriate Documentation
After one spouse files for divorce, the other spouse must file a response. Then, your attorneys must exchange documents. In the legal world, this process is known as “discovery.”
You may be required to offer bank statements, tax returns or life insurance policies among many other things. An attorney helps you put these documents together and ensures that you are not leaving anything out. If you were to do that, your spouse may accuse you of hiding assets.
