When you are going through a divorce, you want divorce lawyers that will aggressively and professionally represent you.
There is a stereotype that some female lawyers are better when representing females and males are better when representing men. Due to this, you will hear those going through divorce asking, is it better to have a male or female divorce lawyer?
Well, no, it doesn’t matter the gender of the lawyer you hire, as it won’t matter to the judge. It also doesn’t affect their skill in helping you reach your desired settlement.
That said, different people feel comfortable working with varying genders, so it’s perfectly fine to choose an attorney that you feel comfortable talking to.
The purpose of the attorney is to guide you through the stressful divorce journey, and your comfort is of paramount importance.
Besides personal comfort, there are plenty of other factors that you should consider when hiring a lawyer. Some of these factors include:
Experience
To increase the chances of getting your desired settlement, you want an experienced attorney. This means that the attorney should have handled similar cases before.
When you hire an experienced professional, you have trust and confidence as you know the professional knows what they are doing, so they will guide you properly and professionally.
Character
How does the attorney conduct themselves? This is vital as it determines the nature of your relationship. An attorney might be experienced, but if they have a history of professional misconduct, chances are your relationship won’t last long.
Before you hire an attorney, sit down with them and try to draw their energy. Do they give off positive energy? Can you work with them?
When going through a divorce, you have to share your most intimate details with the attorney. You can’t trust an attorney with a history of professional misconduct, can you?
Before you even schedule a meeting with the attorney, do thorough research and confirm that they haven’t been charged with professional misconduct. You want to work with a professional with a clean record.
Knowledge
Besides experience, you want a knowledgeable attorney. To tell whether a lawyer is knowledgeable, you need to schedule a meeting with them. During the meeting, ask them as many questions as possible to gauge their know-how.
Some of the questions you can ask include:
- How long have you been working as an attorney?
- What is the most challenging case you have handled?
- How do I prepare for divorce?
- And many others
Client reviews
Client reviews are essential to consider as they give you an idea of how the attorney works. Thankfully, you don’t have to ask the attorney for the reviews. If the lawyer has a Facebook, Yelp, or Google business profile, you can see their reviews.
Go through the reviews and see what the past clients have to say. While you should go with an attorney with positive reviews, you should note that it’s rare to have someone with only positive reviews as some people will maliciously leave negative reviews.
When you consider the attorney’s reviews, you should go for one with many positive reviews. It’s okay to have a few negative reviews, but they shouldn’t be too many.
Fees
The last thing to consider is the fees charged by the attorney. As a rule of thumb, you want an attorney charging a fee that you can afford.
Besides the fees, also consider their payment modes. Different family lawyers Fairfax VA have different modes of payment. Some will charge you an hourly rate, while others will have a fixed price. It’s up to you to weigh the options and settle on the best one.
