click here to return to divorce section WILL AN UNCONTESTED DIVORCE WORK FOR ME?
When it comes right down to it probably 90% of divorces are settled without trial.
Many divorces will be contested at first, both parties hiring lawyers and fighting it out. However most of the time through
this process time passes and the issues are worked out or the parties just get tired of fighting and high legal fees. I have
seen contested divorces take years.
People begin contested divorce cases for many reasons. Please look at what I consider to be the main ones.
1. One party is mad/hurt and wants to hurt the other spouse.
2.The parties are unable to come to an agreement because they cant agree on what is fair.
3.One party is not acting rationally and will not agree on much of anything.
4.One party is hiding assets or will not disclose what the assetts are and because of this an agreement can not
be made.
I will now try to pick these apart to help you answer the question " Will an uncontested divorce work for me"?
Try to answer this question concerning dealing with a hurt/mad spouse. Do you think hiring a lawyer will get them to the
emotional point that they can accept the end of the marriage and settle matters. Do you think the other spouse is more
interested in hurting you by having a contested case than they are in saving money by having an uncontested one. Do you
think over time they will cool off and settle the case and do you want to wait that long. You could also try mediation.
Try to answer this question. If dealing with the situation where you cant agree on what is fair consider the following. Child
support in Alabama is pretty much a mathamatical equation. If the dispute is over the amount of child support it can be
resolved easily once the other spouse learns of the law concerning child support. . They can learn this from you after I have
educated you on the applicable law or from a lawyer they consult.You may also use this CHILD SUPPORT
CALCULTOR to estimate your child support If the dispute is over the marital home, their are many ways to resolve this, in
fact too many to discuss here see the home section. If the dispute is over Alimony read that section also. If the dispute is
over a retirement account see that section. It can usually be resolved if both parties are rational people. If the dispute is
over personal property consider making a list with a heading husband, one that says wife and one that says property and
take turns picking items and adding them to the husband and wife side and you will probably be happier with that than what
a judge would likely do. A judge will divide it how they see fit or order it sold . Neither party may like the way the judge
divides it. You could also try mediation.
Try to answer this question. If dealing with the situation where one party is not acting rationally and wont agree on anything,
the real question to answer is why are they doing that ? Can this be resolved? Well I really dont know, it depends. Will
time fix it and can you wait. Would a session with a therapist fix it and do you want to go. If you want to start an
uncontested case, have us draw up a divorce agreement and send it to your spouse we would be happy to help. You could
then see if they respond with a rational counter offer and go from their. If it must be changed to a contested case later this
can be easily done by paying the difference between a contested and uncontested case. You could also try mediation.
If dealing with the situation where one party is hiding/not disclosing assetts you can explain to them that if they continue it
will cost both of you more money because you will find the assetts through the discovery process. If this does not work I
would be glad to take your contested case if you wish.
In an uncontested case the attorney can only represent one party. The attorney can negotiate a settelement with the other
spouse if they do not have an attorney, but they cant give the other side legal advice. If the other spouse has an attorney
they would negotiate only with the other spouses attorney.
I hope this will help you determine if an uncontested divorce will work for you. If you wish to discuss the matter further
please call.
The following language is required pursuant to Rule 7.2, Alabama Rules of Professional Conduct. No representation is
made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other
lawyers.This web site is designed for general information only. The information presented at this site should not be
construed to be formal legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship.