These are the best money-saving tips I have learned and assembled over the years for my clients.
1
HIRE AN EXPERIENCED ATTORNEY
This sounds like it should be obvious, but can be easy to miss. It is a mistake to think that hiring just anyone licensed to practice law is enough. As medicine has become more specialized and complex over the years, however, so has law. Your neighbor who happens to be a probate attorney may not be well-suited for your divorce case--unless he or she also has sufficient experience practicing divorce law. When choosing an attorney, don't be timid about asking how many years the attorney has been practicing the type of law that your case involves and what percentage of his or her practice involves this area. Attorneys with a greater amount of experience may have a higher hourly rate, but that does not necessarily translate to being more expensive in the long run. An experienced attorney is at times more efficient, more knowledgeable, and more skilled than their less-experienced counter-parts. This may translate to achieving better results and with lower overall fees.
2
WHEN IN DOUBT, MAKE A COPY
It is good practice to never give your one-and-only copy of anything to anyone, not even your attorney. Doing so may leave you without ready and timely access to important information or evidence. Keep a copy of everything, including every document you provide your lawyer and every document your lawyer provides you. Ask your attorney if he or she needs the originals of important evidence. If not, you keep your originals and provide him or her with complete (including fronts and back of any "small print") and full duplicates.
3
BE ORGANIZED
Family law cases often involve the exchange of tax records, bank statements, property and title records, and many types of financial documents. Such information is needed to accurately account for values of property and debt, calculate present and future budgets of the parties, and determine child support and spousal maintenance (alimony). If asked to gather such records for your case, do your best to bring them in assembled in a logical order. If you are missing any statements or records from the time period requested, take the steps necessary to obtain copies unless your attorney has told you that is not necessary. Assume if the documents were requested, they are important and needed, and missing statements may cause problems. If you bring your financial records to your lawyer in disarray in groceries bags, your lawyer or the staff will have to spend the time organizing the documents. Such work is commonly billed "by the hour" and can quickly add up.
4
KEEP APPOINTMENTS AND MEET DEADLINES
In law, most deadlines should be considered "absolute". If your attorney asks you to attend a work session for an upcoming filing or deadline, do you very best to prioritize that meeting and its related tasks above other matters. A missed deadline can be very serious. It could result in the judge not hearing your side of the story, important evidence being excluded from consideration, and loss of vital financial and family interests. Opportunities for a "do over" are rare in law. Your attorney may at times be able to get continuances (extensions of time) for certain proceedings, but it is best not to assume such will happen. Ask your attorney to keep you informed about important deadlines and court dates.
5
TIME IS MONEY
Most contested family law matters are billed at an hourly rate for the work done. Each family law case is unique, and is typically not well-suited for a flat fee because it is not known how many hours will ultimately be required to resolve the issues and address all variables. For this reason, it is a good idea to keep in mind that whenever your attorney is working on your case, he or she is most likely "on the clock." This typically includes phone calls you make to discuss case issues, reading and responding to email, communicating with witnesses and the opposing attorney, preparing paperwork, and time spent in relation to court hearings. The more efficient you are when communicating with your attorney or in your demands for time, the more efficient your attorney will be. This translates to fewer hours being required to accomplish tasks, and accordingly, fewer hours needed to be billed to your case.
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