Most separating couples often lose plenty of their valuables, so most people undergoing divorce are in defence mode.

How do I protect myself before divorce? You will hear most asking. If you are also asking this question, you should know that there are plenty of ways to go about it. These ways include:

Get a divorce attorney.

Everything begins here. The same way you would call an electrician when having an electrical problem in your house, you should call a divorce lawyer when undergoing a divorce.

Many people believe that they only need a lawyer when they are going through a contested divorce, but this isn’t the case. Even if you are in agreement with your ex-spouse, you still need to have an attorney by your side. The attorney will help you draft the divorce agreement and ensure that it favors both parties.

Even if you had already put together the agreement, the lawyer will go through it and ensure that you have covered all the important details, such as the spousal support amount, child visitation rights, and others.

In the event you aren’t in agreement with your spouse, and you head to court, the attorney will represent you and ensure that you get a fair hearing and what you deserve.

In the same way, you can’t hire an inexperienced electrician to run wires in your house, you shouldn’t hire an inexperienced attorney to represent you, so before you hire an attorney, take your time to research and find an experienced contractor that knows what he is doing.

Ensure all of your records are in place

As much as people want to be free of their spouse, they still want to get out of their marriage with something, often a house, car, or even monthly payments.

To ensure that you don’t lose what is legally yours, have all the necessary papers with you.

Did you buy a house or property before you met your spouse? Have the relevant records to prove it.

When it comes to what you expect to share with your ex, write all of it down and the purchase date. It’s even better if you can have the receipts with you.

If you suspect your spouse might try to hide or sell some of these items, create video documentation and give a copy to your spouse. This way, you have a solid, dated record of the things in your house.

Don’t sign anything without your attorney.

Before your divorce, your spouse’s attorney might try to get in touch to try and solve issues so that they don’t get to court.

To avoid setting yourself up for trouble, avoid signing anything as the attorney might trick you into something that might work against you in your property or custody battle.

When your spouse’s attorney contacts you, let your family lawyers Fairfax VA know about it and maintain any contact through your attorney. This prevents you from making a mistake that might backfire on your face later on and make you lose valuables that you shouldn’t have.

Close the joint credit cards

If you have a credit card with your spouse, they might try to hurt you by overspending, and you are forced to make the repayments. To avoid this, as soon as you are no longer together with your spouse, get in touch with your credit card company and close the account and the associated card.

Most banks will block the card but won’t completely close the account until you pay the entire balance to close the account completely, clear all of your balances in full.