best family lawyer

How to Find the Best Family Lawyer

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best family lawyer

If you’re approaching a court case that involves divorce, child support, or adoption, you are probably going to need representation.

As if these types of situations are not stressful enough, you have the added worry of finding the best family lawyer possible.

This isn’t a time that you want to test the waters.

You want to feel confident that you’ve hired the right professional for the job on your first try. After all, you may not get another “day in court” to plead your case. But, if you haven’t had much experience in the courtroom, especially with cases such as these, you may not know who to turn to.

Need tips for finding a good family law attorney to help you win your case?

We’re sharing our ultimate guide on how to get the right lawyer to represent you!

Your Guide to Hiring the Best Family Lawyer

Anyone who has ever been involved personally with a family court case knows how important it is to have an attorney that you can depend on. The stakes are high in these types of cases, and it’s not uncommon for participants to have an equally high level of anxiety.

Not only is there a lot on the line, but you are expected to think fast in choosing someone to represent you start to finish.

Before you begin your search for the best family lawyer that you can find, take a look at this guide to help see you through the process and ensure that you walk into court prepared and confident.

1. Rely on Trusted Sources for Recommendations

According to the American Psychological Association, 40-50% of marriages end in divorce.

The high percentages of marriages that leading to divorce may not be good news, but it does mean that there’s a good chance that others you know have faced circumstances that warranted a family law attorney’s services.

When choosing your own representation, it often helps to ask friends and family for the names of good family lawyers that they might have used to win their case. Oftentimes, people who have been through similar situations will be happy to make a suggestion based on their own experiences.

If you don’t know where to start, start by collecting referrals from family and friends. Any good family law attorney is likely to come up more than once when you begin asking around for recommendations.

2. Hire a Specialist

Do you have a cousin who works in business law that may be willing to cut you a deal on your divorce? While that may sound like a nice gesture, you should probably reconsider before accepting an offer of this nature.

Good family lawyers typically have experience in family law and understand the precise protocol that is followed in a family law courtroom. Cutting corners might benefit you in other court matters, but when it comes to something as important as your family, any extra money spent will be well worth it.

3. Prepare for a Thorough Consultation

Most good family lawyers will provide a no or low-cost consultation. When researching potential attorneys to represent you, find out what their consult policy is. If it does not incur significant charges, plan to meet with as many lawyers as possible during the screening phase.

At this time you should come prepared to ask the representing lawyer certain uniform questions that will help point you in the right direction.

These might include things like:

  • How long have you practiced family law?
  • How much do you charge per hour?
  • What typical steps do you take to ensure success in your cases?
  • What outcome do you predict?
  • Do you feel confident that you can win this case?
  • Who else will I be contacting and working with on my case?

When you are conducting interviews with potential attorneys, take a notebook to jot down the answers to crucial questions, such as those above. Then, when it comes time to choose you will have something that you can use to make comparisons.

4. What Kind of Reputation Does the Lawyer Have?

If you find yourself face-to-face with an attorney who has been unable to share courtroom mistakes or who is regarded in the world of family law as sub-par, then you may want to reconsider hiring them to represent you.

Research the potential lawyer’s local reputation, but also look for online reviews and information on the web. Sometimes, people are more willing to make a true statement regarding their services when they are able to do so anonymously. Online reviews can be a major help to clients who are new to family law.

If you notice more than one negative review, take note. Most sites give you the option to post anonymous reviews, which provides clients with an objective and unbiased opinion of their services.

5. Get Comfortable With Courtroom Lingo

Prior to interviewing prospects, you should brush up on your familiarity with legal terms. When you are discussing your case, you want to be able to do so in a professional manner and with ease.

Legal terms are often a mystery to the average client. You can ensure comprehension and gauge experience when you come to an appointment with basic knowledge regarding the terms discussed.

Don’t Wait! Get Started Today!

If you even think that a family law case could be looming in your future, then it’s time to begin your search for an attorney.

It’s never too early to start looking for a legal representative with expertise in family law. This is especially true if you want to hire the best family lawyer possible and ensure the best chances of winning your case.

Think you may be heading to family court?

Browse our listings for top family lawyers in your area right now!

divorce attorney

Your Step-By-Step Process to Finding a Good Divorce Attorney

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You and your spouse have decided to call it quits, and the decision has sparked a range of emotions within you. You’re ready to finally get on with your own life. However, you’re also overwhelmed — where exactly do you start?

If you’re currently facing a divorce, it’s paramount that you have a great divorce attorney from the get-go. We’ve compiled a step-by-step guide to finding a great lawyer so that you can navigate this hard time in your life with confidence.

Let’s get started.

1. Understand What You Need

Before taking any action related to your divorce, sit down alone and honestly assess your needs when it comes to several aspects of the divorce proceeding.

One of these aspects is cost. What budget do you have for legal costs and fees? The answer to this question might impact the kind of attorney you end up retaining. However, try to avoid establishing too low of a budget, as you’ll likely end up with a lawyer who cannot handle your complex divorce issues.

Another aspect to consider? Gender. Do you prefer a female or a male lawyer?

This is a critical question because some women, for example, feel much more comfortable talking about their sensitive situations to attorneys who are the same sex as they are. Meanwhile, other women might prefer a go-getting man who’ll have no problem going toe-to-toe with their dominating future ex-husbands.

Finally, how involved would you like to be in your divorce proceeding? If you prefer to be hands-on, you’ll need an attorney who will gladly explain to you what is happening at each stage of the case. In other words, your attorney needs to be highly communicative and proactive to work well with you.

2. Seek Out Attorney’s Names, and Interview Them

Now, it’s time to start looking for some potential lawyers.

Going online to search for lawyers is a great starting point thanks to the wealth of information available on the World Wide Web. A website that features several listings of attorneys, in particular, can come in handy.

Once you find the names of some local attorneys, it’s time to interview them. When you call to set up your first attorney interview, pay attention to how the law firm’s representative answers the phone. This will offer a peek into the type of service you’ll receive from the attorney working there.

When you finally meet the attorney, make sure that you ask plenty of questions concerning your divorce needs. A great lawyer will be able to provide you with clear, specific and straight answers to the questions you pose, rather than using legal jargon you don’t understand.

The attorney should also go over the major areas requiring attention in your case, including property division, child support, spousal support and child custody. For instance, he or she should tell you what you can reasonably expect to happen in each of these areas as you work to resolve your case.

3. Evaluate Your Potential Attorneys

After meeting all of your potential attorneys, sit down again and review each of their qualities.

For instance, did one attorney make you feel more comfortable than the others did? It’s critical that the divorce lawyer you select is empathetic and compassionate.

In addition, did a particular lawyer seem more competent than the others did? Be sure to choose an attorney who has several years of experience under his or her belt.

Also, make sure that your chosen lawyer’s personality is compatible with yours. After all, you’ll likely be working with him or her for months.

You additionally need to choose a local attorney, as this will save on travel-related costs. Plus, local attorneys are familiar with the local court system’s rules and procedures as well as the county judges. This is essential for getting through your divorce proceeding without glitches.

4. Count the Cost

So, you’ve settled on a lawyer who seems competent, compassionate and assertive. Before you make the final decision to go with him or her, take a closer look at his or her fees one last time.

The majority of attorneys have hourly charges and require their clients to submit deposits for their law services. Therefore, be prepared to pay a few thousand dollars as a retainer or deposit starting out.

Then, each month, you’ll get a bill that breaks down all of the legal work your attorney has done over the past month. Ask about the attorney’s billing and payment plans.

Also, note that the more complex your case is, the greater the number of fees you’ll likely have to pay. This is particularly true if one of your biggest areas of conflict during divorce is child support or visitation and child custody. Still, some attorneys offer their law services for flat or fixed fees, so this may be worth looking into as well.

In addition, ask your potential attorney about extra office-related charges that may crop up on your bill, such as those for long-distance calls, a fax service or copying services. Many attorneys charge amounts that are marked up for these common services.

Other extra charges to watch out for are those for experts such as a pension plan expert, forensic accountant, child custody evaluator or vocational expert. The attorney should be able to determine early on whether any of these types of experts will be needed as you progress through your case.

How We Can Help You to Find a Good Divorce Attorney

We offer more than 6,000 divorce attorney listings. Attorneys in your local area are easy to find thanks to our user-friendly interactive embedded Google map.

The cities that are searched the most for lawyers on our site are as follows:

  • New Orleans
  • Houston
  • Dallas
  • Austin
  • Washington, D.C.
  • San Antonio

We also offer several featured law firms and lawyers throughout the United States for your convenience. Our goal is to make your online attorney search as quick, easy and efficient as possible.

Get in touch with us to find out more about how you can find the right attorney for your upcoming divorce case.

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