If you’re going through a divorce, likely you already know that having a divorce lawyer is going to make everything go more smoothly. A lot of the stress, details, and difficulty your lawyer can deal with: but what’s your role in all this? A Houston, TX lawyer explains.
From a Houston, TX Attorney: What Is Your Role as a Divorce Lawyer’s Client?
To Be Honest
There’s an old saying that you should never lie to your doctor or your lawyer. That saying is definitely true, and the more honest and open you are with your attorney, the faster and easier this entire process will be. This can be harder than it might seem, however. It’s just natural for all of us to want to hold back anything that we think makes us look bad (even if, in reality, it doesn’t). You might even be reluctant to say anything that makes your soon-to-be ex look bad, too, and while that’s a noble sentiment when it comes to talking with the kids or publicly on social media, it’s not the right thing to do when it comes to your attorney.
Your attorney is on your side. Your attorney is your advocate; the person you have hired to protect your interests and help you accomplish your goals. Furthermore, your attorney is bound by attorney-client privilege to keep everything you say confidential except in very uncommon and specific situations. If you tell your attorney everything, even the very worst things, your lawyer will be completely prepared to deal with it. You might even find once you’ve discussed it that it’s not as bad as you think!
But the worst possible thing in the world would be for your lawyer to go into a courtroom or a hearing thinking that they have all the information only to be blindsided by the other side. Not only does this mean your attorney will not be prepared to defend you, but it will make your attorney look incompetent in front of the judge, which doesn’t so much hurt your lawyer as it hurts you and your case.
To Help Us Help You
Our goal is to get your divorce done as well as it possibly can be. This means speedy, but not rushed; thorough, but without any needless expenses. We actually don’t want to charge you extra fees, and we know you don’t want that either, but what many clients don’t understand is that sometimes their actions actually make it harder for us to serve them well.
When a client leaves incomplete information in a phone message or an email, for example, we then have to follow up, which means more time and potentially more fees. When the information is inaccurate, and we have to dig through to find out the truth, the same thing happens. You can avoid all this by taking a few moments to think through what you’re about to say in a phone message or send an email. Go over the information to make sure it’s accurate and complete. Of course, sometimes we will have to follow up, and that’s just unavoidable: but it’s always best when we don’t need to do extra follow-ups unnecessarily.
To Be As Organized As Possible
Staying organized is going to have plenty of benefits for you. For one thing, it’s going to simply make you look better in front of the court. But it’s also going to make your own life easier and make it easier for us to defend you and help you reach your goals. When you come to speak with us, bring along any legal documents that you have received from the court or from your spouse.
When we discuss your case, we also need all your financial information, such as bank account statements, tax returns, and an accurate list of all the marital property (property you and your ex acquired during the marriage) and individual property (anything you brought into the marriage or which was given to or inherited by just one of you). And speaking of documents, it’s always best to get these to us as quickly as possible. We never want to wait until the last minute before a deadline.
To Consult Us Before Doing Anything Important Related to the Case
There are a number of situations where you should definitely talk to your lawyer before you do anything when you’re in the middle of a divorce. For example, if the other side is pressuring you to say certain things that may boost their narrative, don’t say a word until you’ve talked with us. We can help you be thoroughly prepared to make sure your best interests are met.
If your ex-spouse or their attorney ask you to sign anything, absolutely do not sign until you’ve talked to us, and if your ex tries to pressure you into signing quickly, take that as a huge red flag and walk away. Tell them you’ll reach out after you’ve talked with your lawyer. Be sure to also talk with us before making any major life changes that could affect the terms of your divorce, issues of child custody, or asset division. For example, now may not be the time to be selling your house. Even if you and your ex want to sell together, at least run it by us. This is also usually not a good time to start up a new romantic relationship, and especially if there are kids in the mix.
You should also wait before you talk about any details of your divorce or discuss your ex on social media. It’s natural to want to vent, but what goes up on social media never really goes away, even if you delete it. Your ex or their lawyers could use something you say against you, so the best thing to do is to not discuss the divorce publicly at all. If you feel you must, ask us about it first.
To Pay Bills On Time
Finally, you can be a great client by paying your attorney on time, and if you’re having trouble paying, the best possible thing you can do is to let us know immediately. Your lawyer is always better able to work with you when you communicate, and we understand what divorce is like: we get that things can happen and this is a hard time of life. If you let the payments just get behind and don’t address the issue, though, it only makes the problem worse.
We’re here to help, and our role as your lawyers is to make your divorce go as smoothly as possible and help you accomplish all your goals so you’re ready to embark on the next stage of life. Reach out to us at Skillern Firm Divorice and Child Custody Lawyers in Houston, Katy, and Sugar Land, TX today to set up a consultation.
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