1. What Should I Do to Prepare for a Divorce?
Secure new housing (consider if the needs to be in your child’s current school district);
Gather financial records (i.e. W-2’s, paystubs, business and personal income tax returns);
Open a new bank account;
Decide on the right process for you and your spouse (e.g. mediation vs. hiring lawyers vs. collaborative divorce);
2. Do I Need a Lawyer?
You are best served by having a lawyer involved as your representative or mediator as there are many legal issues that should be navigated with the assistance of counsel, such as the date of separation (as it affects the length of time that spousal support may be paid, the date that debts are no longer joint debts, and the date that many joint assets will be valued), valuation methods for assets, child custody considerations (e.g. school selection, how far you can move away from your co-parent), which income sources are used to calculate child support vs. spousal support, debt allocation, working with experts such as forensic accountants to value a business (and many forensic accountants will only take cases where lawyers are involved), how to obtain information and documents from the other side (called discovery including depositions), trial preparation, and the like. You can represent yourself, but the process typically takes longer and legal issues may be overlooked without the guidance of a lawyer.
3. Are You Filing for Divorce in the Right State/County?
You must live in the state for 6 months and the county for 3 months before filing in that county. There are exceptions for emergency jurisdiction in the case of filing for legal separation rather than dissolution of marriage or domestic violence.
4. How Much Will the Legal Costs Be?
The legal costs will vary depending on the process chosen to complete the divorce and the extent to which there is disagreement between the spouses. Mediation will typically cost drastically less than litigation. The more you can work out with your spouse and their lawyer, the shorter the divorce process and the lower the costs in most scenarios.
5. Can I Sell Any Assets or Change my Insurance Policies Once the Divorce Process has Started?
Unless for necessities of life (such as food or housing) or in the ordinary course of business, you cannot sell, transfer/gift, or take loans against any assets once the divorce has been filed and the other party has been served with the initial papers that have been filed. And you cannot change beneficiaries to retirement accounts or modify insurance policies once the divorce process has started.
6. What Does it Mean to Hire a Private Judge?
Rather than accessing the public court judges, parties to a divorce or child custody case can hire a private judge. The benefits include: more direct attention to your case and a speedier process. However, both parties must agree and the private judge charges a retainer and/or hourly rate while the public court judges do not require payment from individual parties for their services.