A common question in beginning divorce proceedings is this: “How do I pick a good divorce lawyer?”

While a “good” divorce lawyer is subjective and will be different for everyone, there are a few questions that you can ask yourself in order to find the right divorce attorney for you.

The first question you should ask yourself is: “Should I be looking for divorce lawyers near me?”

The answer to this question might seem obvious, but there are a couple of caveats. You may not need your divorce attorney to have an office that is extremely close to where you work or live. Ideally, the lawyer you choose will have an office within driving distance of you. However, hiring an attorney that’s really close to where you live could be of detriment to you if you live far away from where your divorce case will actually be heard.

For example, if you live in City A, but your divorce case will be heard at the courthouse in City B and City B is 4 hours away, you may want to consider hiring an attorney in City B so that you won’t be billed for unnecessary travel costs.  Alternatively, if you hire an attorney whose office is far away from where your case will be heard, you may incur additional costs because your attorney will need to travel to you for the hearings.

A question that men might ask is, “should I be looking at divorce lawyers for men?”

Generally, you don’t need to look for attorneys that are gender specific, unless you have a preference. Whatever attorney you hire will do the best job they can in providing you with the desired outcome of your case.

Thirdly, you may have heard of a term called “collaborative divorce”.

If you’re wondering if you should hire a collaborative lawyer, it helps to know that a “collaborative divorce” is when both spouses hire their own attorneys and agree to work out the terms of their divorce without taking their issues to court. Essentially, both parties agree to work together to resolve the issues that come up in the divorce process.

Ultimately, you should do your research and hire an attorney that you feel comfortable in working with. For additional questions, you can review our common questions webpage here.

Call or text Intermountain Legal for a $75 family law consultation at 801-990-4200.

You may lose rights that you never knew you had.

Obviously, if you are not paying an attorney – you will save money upfront. Even though people do go through simple divorces without an attorney, the chances of a divorce remaining simple is low. I often hear of people who represent themselves through the divorce process and I am not surprised to find out that they lost many rights that they would have kept had they hired a good family law attorney. There are numerous rights that most people are unaware that they have. Without an attorney advising them, those that self-represent as pro-se will remain in the dark, unaware about their rights when they could have, and should have, received a better settlement.

Going through the grieving process involved in divorce is not the best time to handle the most important issues of your life by yourself.

When we are emotionally invested with our own case, as the case often is when we represent ourselves, we allow our passion to blind our ability to reason.  The divorce process is an emotional rollercoaster of highs and lows that some describe as being more painful than the death of a loved one.  It would logically follow that we will experience the same stages of grief that we experience when a loved one dies.  Such emotional turmoil creates a passion in us that clouds our normal reasoning ability.  Thus, self-represented divorcees have a high likelihood of unreasonably focusing their attention on matters of slight, if any, significance.  This causes them to miss the forest for the trees and they end up becoming less likely to obtain the outcome they seek.  We often hear the old saying that “we are our own worst enemy.”  I believe that to be true when going through the divorce process and that is one of the reasons why I will hire an attorney to represent myself.  Good family law attorneys can see our cases from an objective and professional perspective.  Such a perspective allows them to avoid missing the forest for the trees, keeps their focus on the relevant issues that will help us and our cases, protects us from further emotional turmoil, and guards our rights through the process.

Avoid being the person who has a fool for a client and invest in your future.

Why is it said that he who represents himself has a fool for a client?  The self-represented pro-se divorcee is likely to lose much more money in the long run than they would have spent had they hired an attorney who can help them understand their rights and mediate, negotiate, or litigate to keep them.  The long term costs of the loss of rights affect our pocketbook, our children’s lives, and our own quality of life.  How much time would you like to have with your kids?  What will your parenting plan look like?  How will your assets be divided?  There is something to be said about letting your attorney work for you to advocate for your future.  We would not have to negotiate with our spouse or ex-spouse directly. This can protect us from a lot of the emotional costs involved in our divorce case.

The heavy costs of self representation through the divorce process.

At first glance, it may seem like a good idea to go through the divorce process on your own.  After all you can save upfront costs on attorney fees. However, your long term financial and emotional costs may outweigh your short term benefit.  Thus, if you would like to save yourself more money in the long run, be able to rest assured that your case is being handled professionally and that your rights are being watched out for, rather than attempting to deal with the complexities of the law while you are going through the grieving process, then I recommend hiring a good family law attorney to work for you through the divorce process.

Warm regards,

James P. McGarvey
Intermountain Legal, p.c.
(801) 784-8654
[email protected]

If you have children

Perhaps most importantly, divorce will change the lives of your children. A decree of divorce will contain specific orders governing the custody, care and support of your children, including a detailed schedule of when the children should reside with each parent. So when a marriage involves frequent conflict or physical or emotional abuse, the divorce will likely result in the children being happier, healthier and safer. In such cases, a parent-time schedule should be designed to ensure that the children spend the majority of their time in a safe, healthy and stable home environment.

Alternatively, when the children are equally bonded with both parents, parent-time schedules should be designed to allow the children to maintain an ongoing, meaningful relationship with both parents. However, no matter how well the parties work together, the children will experience significant change. They will be required to travel between parents and may be required to move to new neighborhoods, change schools, and adjust to new schedules and expectations.

Financial support

Your financial condition and stability will also be significantly impacted by divorce. The resources previously available to your household will be divided between two households. Before petitioning the court for a decree of divorce, you should prepare for the economic impact of divorce.

Regardless of how much time you are allowed with your children, you will be required to financially support your children. In Utah, both parents are required to provide support until each child turns 18 years of age and graduates from high school. In addition to child support, both parents are required to pay half the cost of their children’s child care and medical expenses, including medical insurance premiums.

You may also be required to pay spousal support (alimony) to assist the other party in paying his/her monthly expenses. Alimony is a significant issue in long term marriages, where one party historically provided income for the family and the other party worked within the home. In such cases, the court may attempt to equalize resources to ensure that both parties are able to maintain a similar standard of living. In short term marriages, alimony may be awarded on a temporary basis to return a spouse to the standard of living he/she enjoyed prior to the marriage.

Marital property

Utah law requires an equitable division of property. While the term “equitable” does not necessarily mean “equal,” it is common for the court to determine the value of all assets accrued during a marriage and divide that value equally between the two parties.

If you purchased a home during your marriage, one or both parties will lose their home and be forced to seek alternative housing. The court may order you to sell the home and divide the money from the sale equally. The court may also decide that one party should keep the home and pay to the other party his/her share of the value of the home.

If you have carefully contributed money to a retirement account, you will lose a portion of your future security to your spouse. As a general rule, anything paid into a retirement, pension or investment account by either party during the marriage relationship is divisible in divorce. Retirement plan administrators require a special order, called a Qualified Domestic Relations Order, to transfer retirement assets from one spouse to the other. After obtaining a decree of divorce, you or your spouse will incur additional attorney fees to draft the order releasing the retirement funds.

Personal property, including vehicles, jewelry, furniture and kitchenware, will also be divided. Once property is divided, you will be solely responsible for any loans or credit accounts associated with the property in your possession. You may incur significant expenses purchasing new furniture and appliances or taking sole responsibility for your vehicle loan or the credit card you used to purchase your new entertainment center.

Divorce Problems

As a divorce attorney, I work to obtain a decree of divorce that will minimize the financial impact to my clients and will allow them as much time as possible with their children. My goal is to ensure that my clients are in a position to move on from their divorce to the next phase of their life.

However, I am limited in how much I can do to help people recover after their separation. A decree of divorce does little to help clients or their children heal from the pain and loss of separation. Dealing with change can be difficult and can result in depression, anxiety and stress. After divorce, people may feel like they simply traded one set of problems for a painful new set of challenges.

Divorce does not end your relationship with your former spouse; it simply changes the nature of that relationship. In cases involving children or ongoing support payments, you will have to communicate and work with the other party for years after your divorce is final. A decree of divorce may limit your communication with your former spouse, but no court order can make your interactions with that person any easier or less painful. There is little a divorce attorney can do to ensure that your former spouse will treat you with kindness or respect, return your calls and emails or keep you apprised of your children’s daily activities. There is also no guarantee that the other party will abide by the decree of divorce. Often post-divorce litigation is necessary to force compliance with court orders.

After Divorce

Following divorce, you will need to understand that you cannot control the other person’s behavior. Rather, you can improve your own situation by treating your former spouse with civility, focusing on your children and embracing the opportunity to make positive changes.

Focusing on your children’s needs is of particular importance. Children often experience feelings of guilt and helplessness following the separation of their parents. Obtaining a decree of divorce can help create a set schedule and sense of stability. However, it may take several years for children to adapt to living in separate households. It is important for both parents to set aside their differences in communicating with the children. You should never ask your children to choose between parents, deliver messages to the other parent or discuss adult issues. It may be necessary to seek the advice and help of a mental health professional to help your children through the divorce process. This can also be helpful because divorce typically forces additional problems to the forefront. Whatever the situation, before deciding to get divorced, be realistic about what a divorce will and will not accomplish.

Don’t be fooled into thinking divorce is the solution to all your problems. But if your marriage is past the point of repair, it may be the only way to provide a better future for you and your children.

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Attorney fees and expenses can quickly accumulate to overwhelming amounts in contested divorce cases. Each week, I will provide you with a tip on how to reduce the cost of your divorce.

TIP #3. DO YOUR OWN DISCOVERY

The Utah Rules of Civil Procedure set forth the specific requirements for conducting discovery in divorcecases.  Pursuant to Rules 26 and 26.1, you are required to identify all potential witness, provide copies of documents that may be used in your case and complete a Financial Declaration within 14-28 days after a Petition for Divorce and Answer have been filed.  Thereafter, the parties may conduct additional discovery to obtain additional records and information that may be useful at trial.  Pursuant to Rule 26, each party to a divorce may take 15 hours of depositions and submit 10 interrogatories, 10 requests for production and 10 requests for admission.

Gathering and organizing contact information, bank statements, pay stubs, tax information and bills does not require any technical legal knowledge.  However, discovery – the process of gathering, redacting and exchanging records – can be one of the most time consuming and expensive aspects of divorce.  To keep costs down, you should do as much of the work as possible without the assistance of your attorney.

The first step is completing a Financial Declaration.  You can find a form Financial Declaration on the Resources page of the Intermountain Legal website.  Work through each page of the Financial Declaration.   Be careful to calculate monthly averages correctly and avoid manipulating the numbers (read more about using the right numbers here).   Rule 26.1 requires that you attach statements verifying the amounts you have listed in your Financial Declaration. You are required to attach the following:

1. Complete federal and state tax returns for the past two years, filed by or on behalf of you and any business in which you have ownership interest;
2. Pay stubs or other proof of earned and unearned income for the past 12 months;
3. Loan applications and financial statements prepared by or for you within the last 12 months;
4. An appraisal, tax valuation, mortgage statement or other documents verifying the value of any real property owned by you;
5. Past three months of statements for all checking, savings, money market, brokerage, investment and retirement accounts in your name or in which you have interest;
6. Recent statements from all credit card or other debt accounts, showing the total amount outstanding and the monthly payment.

You have easy access to your discoverable financial information.  Your attorney does not.  Put together all of the required financial records and any other records that may be helpful in resolving your divorce issues before turning your Financial Declaration over to your attorney.  Organize the records to make it easier for your attorney to review your numbers and calculations.

If possible, use white out, a black marker or a computer program such as Adobe Acrobat to redact your private information.  All divorce cases are private thanks to a new law that became effective in April, 2012.  However, attorneys are still very careful about filing or exchanging private information about their client’s lives.  The following information should be redacted from records before they are filed:

1. Social security numbers, except for the last four digits;
2. Financial or other account numbers, except for the last four digits;
3. Driver’s license numbers, except for the state of issuance and last four digits;
4. Address of a non-party, except for the city, state and zip code;
5. Dates of birth of a non-party, except for the month and year of birth; and
6. Minor’s names, except for the first, middle and last initials.

You retained your attorney to provide you with expert legal advice.  There is no reason why you should pay your attorney to labor over secretarial tasks.  Streamline the discovery process by providing records when asked, organizing your records in a clear manner and redacting records.  If you have time to assist in your own discovery, you will shave hours of attorney fees off the total cost of your case.

The experienced family law attorney at Intermountain Legal can answer your questions about what is discoverable in a divorce or custody action, how to present your information to the court and how to calculate monthly expenses and monthly support.  If you have become buried in the discovery process and need legal advice, contact Hailey Black for your free 30 minute divorce consultation.

California judge gets it right

I came across this article and video by the Huffington Post, which describe a new one-day divorce program in Sacramento, California.  Sacramento Judge James Mize has designed and initiated a speedy divorce program for low income couples.  Each Friday, couples are invited to divorce court, where they are provided with a free lawyer who assists in drafting the necessary divorce papers.  After the paperwork is complete, the couples go in front of Judge Mize, and after a brief hearing, they walk away with signeddivorce orders. In an interview, Judge Mize complains that the paperwork and procedural requirements for an ordinary divorce are confusing and may take pro se parties years to complete correctly.  Judge Mize’s program recognizes that couples need a faster and easier way to get divorced.  The program is managed and staffed by volunteer attorneys and law students, requiring no additional state funding.

I applaud Judge Mize for his innovation in divorce law and agree with his sentiments.  It takes far too long to get divorced.  Divorce is a complex process, even when the parties have few issues and are able to resolve their divorce amicably.  There are numerous documents that must be filed before a judge is even willing to look at the case to determine whether jurisdiction is proper, requirements have been met and the case is ready to proceed.

Utah’s waiting period and other requirements

In Utah, you can expect your divorce to take at least three months.  Utah Code Ann. §30-3-18 provides that couples must wait 90 days after filing their divorce petition before a final order can be entered.

Prior to 2012, the 90 day waiting period was not required in cases where both parties completed the required divorce education courses.  The waiting period could also be waived for any good cause set forth in the divorce papers.

In 2012, the Utah legislature amended Utah Code Ann. §30-3-18 to prevent parties from waiving the 90-day waiting period unless they can establish extraordinary circumstances.  While it remains unclear what may qualify as extraordinary circumstances, it is clear that the legislature wanted to make it more difficult for couples to get a speedy divorce.  Under the prior version of the statute, couples needed only to assert that they had been unsuccessful in their attempts to reconciliation and that they were certain any further attempts to save the marriage would be futile.  Now, couples will need to show that there is some other pressing reason, such as a new marriage or extraordinary financial situations, in order to obtain a waiver of the mandatory waiting period.

Even under the best set of circumstances, it will likely take at least 90 days after you file your Utah Petition for Divorce to obtain a final order.  If the divorce is contested or the required papers are not filed, the divorce may take much longer.  There are numerous affidavits, information sheets and other documents which must be filed with the court before the judge will enter the Decree of Divorce.

With contested divorce cases, it may take years to obtain a Decree of Divorce.  Couples are required to fully disclose all financial assets through a lengthy discovery process.  It may be necessary to retain other professional to assist in the division of property, such as forensic accountants, home appraisers and tax experts.  Couples with children frequently retain guardian ad litem attorneys to interview the children or psychologists to complete a thorough custody evaluation.

Hopefully, Utah lawmakers will eventually realize the need for a faster and simpler divorce process.  The current Utah belief seems to be that the courts can save marriages by slowing down the divorce process.  When a couple decides that their marriage is so irretrievably broken that they need to divorce, it is generally not in anyone’s best interests to try to keep that couple together.  Nobody knows whether a marriage can be saved better than the two individuals who are living in that marriage.  If a couple is able to work out a divorce resolution without court intervention, Utah should let them be divorced.

The family law team at Intermountain Legal understands the need to have divorce cases handled as quickly and efficiently as possible.  Family law attorney Hailey Black can guide you through a contested divorce or work with you to ensure all required papers for your uncontested divorce are in order.  During your initial consultation, Hailey will advise you on your options and provide you with an approximate timeline for resolving your divorce case.

Attorney fees and expenses can quickly accumulate to overwhelming amounts in contested divorce cases. Each week, I will provide you with a tip on how to reduce the cost of your divorce.

TIP #2. HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY.

Clients are understandably reluctant to reveal their secrets to an attorney – a person they likely met and hired just ten minutes ago.  However, the divorce process is intrusive.  Your spouse will conduct thorough discovery into your financial situation, personal beliefs and history.  You can be certain that nothing will remain secret in a contested divorce case.

By disclosing all relevant facts and information from the outset of your case, you can ensure that your divorce attorney is adequately prepared to respond to potential claims and allegations.  You will also eliminate the need to spend time and money filing amended pleadings to clarify or resolve inaccuracies.

Pursuant to Rule 26.1 of the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, you will be required to provide a detailed accounting of your finances in the form of a verified Financial Declaration.  You can find a sample Financial Declaration on the Intermountain Legal website.  Don’t manipulate the numbers.  Your attorney will need to know exactly how much you earned last year, how much debt you have accumulated and how much money you have saved or invested.  All the information that you provide will need to be verified through bank records, account statements, monthly bills, tax returns and pay stubs.

You should also be prepared to disclose information relating to your marriage, your background and history and your spouse’s background and history.  Your divorce attorney should be informed as to any criminal convictions, affairs or allegations of domestic violence that may be relevant to your case.  Keep organized records and be prepared to verify any claims you make against your spouse.  Provide your attorney with copies of police reports, child abuse findings, phone records or photographs that may assist in resolving your case.

Don’t be shy.  The family law team at Intermountain Legal has handled hundreds of cases, involving everything from child abuse to drug dependency issues to open marriage.  Hailey Black has the knowledge and experience to advise you on the proper ways to handle difficult issues.

Attorney fees and expenses can quickly accumulate to overwhelming amounts in contested divorce cases. Each week, Inetermountain Legal will provide you with a tip on how to reduce the cost of your divorce.

TIP #1.      GET A HANDLE ON YOUR FINANCIAL SITUATION BEFORE FILING FOR DIVORCE.

In Utah, marital property and debts are generally distributed equally between the parties.  Resolving property issues should not be difficult.  However, sorting through financial records can be one of the mosttime-consuming steps of the divorce process.  This is particularly true where one or both parties came into the marriage with substantial premarital assets.  Accounting may also be difficult where one party has been primarily responsible for finances, leaving the other party in the dark about what assets and debts have been accrued.

To streamline your divorce and limit the time you will spend conducting discovery, you should learn as much as possible about your financial situation before filing.  Run a credit report on yourself.  Collect your most recent statements from bank accounts, retirement accounts and credit card accounts.  Open the bills and mortgage statements that are delivered to your home.  Make separate files for marital property and separate property.

If possible, minimize the number of joint debts, assets and expenses you share with your spouse.  Pay off joint credit cards.  Open your own separate checking and savings accounts.  Take half of the money from joint accounts and then stop using those joint accounts.  Take your spouse’s name off the loan for your vehicle.  If you are worried about alimony, limit the amount of money you contribute to your spouse’s expenses and debts.

The family law team at Intermountain Legal is experienced in discovering financial assets.  Our family law attorney, Hailey Black, can advise you on the issues and options that relate to your unique case and your specific set of financial circumstances.  If the financial issues in your case seem overwhelming, contact Intermountain Legal for a free divorce consultation.

The biggest celebrity divorce story of the week was reported here by the Daily Mail Online and here by Forbes.  Few financial losses can rival the potential blow to Harold Hamm’s fortune as a result of his divorce from wife Sue Ann Hamm.  Mr. and Mrs. Hamm have already entered into a confidentiality agreement, so the media can only speculate about whether the couple signed a prenuptial agreement before they were married.

Harold Hamm is a self-made oil tycoon, reportedly worth $11.3 billion.  Mr. Hamm is one of the wealthiestmen in America and has been named one of the most influential people in the world by Time magazine.  If he and his wife did not sign a prenuptial agreement, Mr. Hamm could be ordered to pay as much as $5 billion to resolve his divorce.

Pursuant to Oklahoma divorce law, marital property is equitably distributed between the parties to a divorce action.  Equitable division requires that all property and financial assets accrued during the marriage be divided in a fair and just manner.  While equitable distribution does not necessarily require equal division, Mrs. Hamm will likely receive a very sizable payout.

Mrs. Hamm is an economist and lawyer.  However, she gave up other employment opportunities to work as an executive for her husband”s companies. Mrs. Hamm worked for her husband at a time when the value of the Hamm oil companies increased significantly.  Five of the companies have been subpoenaed to provide financial records and information in the divorce case.  A well-drafted prenuptial agreement could have protected Mr. Hamm’s companies from being divided or sold in the event of divorce.

Prenuptial agreements can also be drafted to take into account potential changes in circumstance.  When drafting a prenuptial agreement, your attorney should consider penalties for adultery or abandonment and incentives for supporting family businesses or caring for children.  Mrs. Hamm has alleged that her husband committed adultery, and her allegations may result in a larger payout.  Adultery is relevant to the issue of equitable property distribution.  If Mr. Hamm diverted resources away from the marital estate to visit or buy gifts for girlfriends, Mrs. Hamm may receive a larger portion of the remaining estate.  Mrs. Hamm’s pain and suffering may also be taken into account.

Discussing and negotiating a prenuptial agreement is smart financial planning for any couple planning to enter into a marriage relationship.  Broaching the subject to your future spouse is not easy or romantic.  However, negotiating a prenuptial agreement is similar to purchasing a life insurance policy.  Just as you do not wish for your spouse’s demise, you do not wish for your marriage to end.  It is impossible to know what the future may hold, and it is smart to plan for unforeseeable events.  It is always easier to discuss a fair and reasonable dissolution while you and your spouse still like each other.

Family law attorney Hailey Black is experienced in drafting thorough, equitable and clear agreements.  If you would like to negotiate a prenuptial agreement before taking the next step in your relationship, Hailey is available to consult with you about the requirements and to assist you in drafting an enforceable legal contract.