Divorce Attorney Fees

If you are going through a divorce and you’re the breadwinner, you’ll probably be saddled with both your and your ex-spouse’s attorney fees. By most courts’ standards, the working spouse is the only one who is capable of doing it.

Here’s an example: There’s a divorce case with disputed custody. The custody proceedings cost $10,000. The wife had psychological issues which were medically proven. However, the judge ruled in their favor, and the husband was forced to pay his and her attorney fees. That’s not including the costs for the rest of the divorce proceedings. If you are the only provider, be wary because you will probably be stuck paying all the legal fees in the event of a divorce.

Who ends up paying legal fees can also depend on what legal actions were taken. If one spouse undertakes legal actions that are of a fractious nature. In divorce cases, it’s essential that you only pick the battles that are truly worth fighting, and prepare yourself with proof. Court is not the place to be vengeful- if a judge thinks that you’re raising a frivolous suit to avoid paying child or spousal support, they won’t take it lightly.

Paying your ex’s legal fees isn’t as bad as it’s made out to be. If the court is truly fair, they’ll take the payment into consideration when they’re awarding property. However, a “generous” settlement usually comes with correspondingly large legal fees.

The time it takes to get a divorce finalized can be frustrating. To start, you’ll have to come up with a lot of information- details of your life that you completely forgot or thought were irrelevant. You’ll have to fill out very detailed forms, and provide other information like loan, mortgage and bank account numbers. Then, your lawyer will evaluate the information you’ve provided, and then file the necessary court documents. The time taken to gather information and fill out paperwork can mean days missed from work- yet another way that divorce can cost you.

Most people think that they’ll be able to handle all their divorce proceedings outside of the time that they’re supposed to be working. This may be possible for some, but for most, the people that are helping with the divorce case (lawyers, mediators, etc) are really only available during work hours. Divorce not only costs you in terms of legal fees and spousal support, it can cost you wages and time at work.