Dangers of Filing For Divorce in Texas Without an Attorney
Saying “I do” has gotten easier, but the reality is that 40-50% of marriages in the United States ends in divorce. If you find yourself in the event of a Texas divorce, you will probably go through the question of whether you should file a divorce without an attorney. Many people believe that once the marriage is over, the change of marriage status doesn’t affect other areas of your life. They forgo the attorneys because of money, time or both. What these people soon realize is that divorces aren’t just cut and dry and in many cases there are issues that come up affecting things such as property assets and debts, children and finances.
Here are a few of the major dangers that happen when you file for a divorce without an attorney:
1.Misunderstanding Child Support and Child Custody
The most common questions that divorce attorneys receive are questions like “Who pays child support? Who is the child support for? Who gets custody of the children? What determines child visitation?” And these questions are valid questions when you have a child whose life you want to continue to be in. In often cases, certain expenses for child support are unaccounted for and come as a surprise when the divorce is finalized. Also, there are many cases where the parents decide they don’t need a parenting plan which oftentimes comes back to bite them once the divorce has been finalized. It is important to hire an attorney to mediate before problems arise and assist you in filing all the documentation before the final divorce decree.
2. Believing that filing a divorce is easy if you’re both amicable
Commonly spouses believe that because they are civil towards each other, that it will be easy to file for divorce without an attorney. Time and time again, spouses believe that they have worked “everything out” but don’t realize that there are many fine details that they have been overlooked. These overlooked details, when unaddressed, tend to surface once the divorce is finalized and keep both parties in a dispute long after the papers are filed. The main reason that you should retain legal representation is because most people aren’t familiar with divorce proceedings and the courts requirements for filing. If you file for divorce and don’t know about these requirements, you could unknowingly be tied up in red tape for years.
3. Misinterpreting what alimony means
Regardless of what the situation may be, if you or your spouse intends on receiving alimony, you need to hire a divorce attorney. The laws that surround spousal support and alimony are very complicated. Without the appropriate guidance, spouses almost always misunderstand how alimony works, what it is, and how it’s decided. Every state is different when it comes to the determination of how to calculate, pay and for how long. Without an attorney, it is almost impossible to correctly determine all of the factors that go into how the court decides and assigns alimony.
It’s possible that you are able to file a divorce without the help of a lawyer, but these instances are rare and have limited circumstances. Many of these couples are couples that don’t have children, have very few assets and probably have had a short marriage. Going at a divorce alone without support is almost always a gamble, do yourself a favor and hire a lawyer to handle your case. We’re here to help.