How A Family Lawyer Can Help You Outside The Courtroom
If you have a family law issue, consider hiring a lawyer even if you don't plan on filing a lawsuit or petitioning the court for anything. This is because there are numerous issues a family attorney can still help you with outside the courtroom. Here are three examples of what a family lawyer can do for you outside the court:
Avoid Wasting Money and Resources
The advice you can get from a family lawyer can help you avoid wasting money and resources. For example, if you are planning to go to court to seek an amendment of alimony or child support payments, a family lawyer can analyze your case and tell you whether to proceed with the case based on your chances of succeeding.You can save money by avoiding a case that you have no or low chances of winning.
Getting Out-of-Court Settlements
Not all legal disputes have to be resolved in the courtroom. In fact, some of the best settlements of disputes are crafted from out-of-court negotiations. For example, if you were planning to ask the court for an increase in child support, your lawyer can sit down with the paying parent and explain to them why it's in everybody's interest to agree to the increase without contesting the request. If the negotiations succeed, you will get what you want without having to waste time in court. A further benefit of this arrangement is that you will be able to keep the peace between you and the other parent; court orders tend to damage that a lot.
Clarification of Options
Lastly, consulting a lawyer can also help you understand the options you have so that you can make an informed decision. For example, if your partner isn't paying child support, you may think that the only thing you can do is to get the court to garnish their wages or assets. However, you also have the option of talking to the other parent and coming to an agreement that they can afford to pay. The lawyer can also explain to you that wage garnishment isn't the only way out; what if the other parent doesn't have regular wages? The government also allows for the suspension of driving licenses for those who default on child support payments; that may also encourage the paying parent to pay up.
In short, you can always get your money's worth by consulting an attorney with any legal issue, even if you don't anticipate going to court. What's more, such issues don't cost a ton of money. Attorneys like The Law Office of Colon & Associates PLLC can help.