Divorce can be costly for both spouses. Even couples who were doing relatively well financially can come out on the other side of their divorce bankrupt, or uncomfortably close to it. Fortunately, you can do things during your divorce that can protect your financial security.
Hiring a divorce attorney might seem like a counterintuitive move when you’re aiming to reduce the cost of your divorce, but it is one of the most financially sensible things that you can do. Your Texas divorce attorney understands how all things financial work in divorce cases, and they can help you understand the potential cost of just about every decision that you’ll have to make during your divorce, so you can avoid making costly mistakes. That knowledge alone is worth the investment, but there’s more. Individuals who get represented by attorneys in their divorce cases have a higher likelihood of settling their divorce by agreement rather than by trial. When spouses settle a divorce, each of them is likely to be more satisfied with the result than they would be if their case went to trial and a judge decided the outcome.
Another mistake that some people make, whether they get represented by an attorney or not, is supplying incomplete or incorrect financial information. When you divorce, all of your financial information must be made available to your attorney, your spouse’s attorney, and the court. If you purposefully or accidentally withhold information about anything, the court might penalize you.
Having unreasonable or unrealistic expectations is a third mistake that could cost you in your Texas divorce. Whether you are working with an attorney or representing yourself, make sure that you’re asking for a reasonable amount of the marital property, a reasonable parenting schedule, and so on. Your attorney can help you understand what types of requests and proposals are reasonable when you present them with accurate information about your marriage and family life as well as your assets and when you keep the conversation focused more on practical things than on how you are feeling (angry, betrayed, etc.) Seek support for your feelings from friends, family, or through counseling, and use your attorney’s expertise to get the details of your divorce sorted out so that you can move forward with your life. Keeping your expectations and any proposals or requests that you make during your divorce reasonable can save you money in multiple ways. Firstly, your soon to be former spouse and their attorney are more likely to accept your ideas with few modifications. Also, if the two of you can reach agreement on how to settle each element of your divorce case, then you can present your solution to the court as an uncontested divorce, which avoids the costs of litigation and results in an outcome designed by the two of you instead of by a judge.
An experienced Texas Family Law Attorney can help you work through the legal details of your divorce towards a positive result. Call (903) 753-7499, to schedule a consultation with Texas Family Law Attorney Alex Tyra, or visit our web page anytime to submit an online contact form.