Whether you are just preparing to get married, or just preparing to split up, reaching an agreement about issues like custody, child support, alimony, and division of assets is usually preferable to a drawn out legal battle. No one knows your family better than you do. Rather than having a judge decide what happens to your kids, or with your assets, you can spend some time working with an attorney and the opposing party to reach an agreement that is satisfactory for everyone involved and eliminates the uncertainty and risk of going to court.
Working with an attorney to come to an agreement with your partner or ex-partner can save you months of time and thousands of dollars in legal fees now and in the future.
In both FULL REPRESENTATION cases and with Unbundled Services, our attorneys can help you to understand the law and advise you about what may or may not happen if you do take issues like custody, alimony, or asset division before a judge. Once everyone is informed, it is much easier to reach an agreement that works for you and your family.
If you have a divorce or custody case pending, entering into a written agreement with the opposing party can be the easiest and most painless way to get through your case. When entering into an agreement there are a number of things to consider.
- Does your agreement address all the issues in a divorce or custody case? Physical custody, legal custody, division of marital property like homes and retirement accounts, insurance, taxes, vehicles, alimony, and debts are just some of the most common issues that should be addressed.
- Is your agreement specific enough to protect against misunderstandings or either party taking advantage of “loopholes.”
- Does your agreement provide contingencies if things don’t go as planned? For example if you agree to sell the house and split the proceeds, what will you do if the house doesn’t sell within a certain timeframe?
- Is your agreement in the best interests of your children? When it comes to custody and child support, if you are submitting an agreement to be incorporated into a court order, the court must find that what you’ve agreed to is in the best interests of the child(ren).
There are many ways to come to an agreement in a divorce or custody case. You can reach agreement yourselves and have an attorney help to put it in writing and make it a court order, you can have an attorney assist you reaching the agreement and in drafting it, or you can attend mediation to help in reaching an agreement and then have an attorney assist you in finalizing it. Having an attorney help you with just one part of your case in this way is part of our Unbundled Services and can be an effective way to get a good result in your case within your budget.
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