When you are going through a divorce, you want an experienced professional by your side who will not only help you manage the emotions that come with divorce but also guide you in the right direction.
This calls for you to be ultra cautious when hiring an attorney—you shouldn’t hire just any lawyer. What should you consider when hiring divorce lawyers? There are plenty of things to look out for, with the common ones being:
Number of cases the attorney has handled
How many cases has the attorney handled before? You should know this before you work with them. Of course, you want an attorney that has dealt with many divorce cases in the past.
As much as you want to part ways with your partner, you don’t want to air your dirty linens in public, do you?
To reduce the chances of doing this, you should settle your case out of court.
To ensure that you are going the right way, ask your attorney about the number of divorce cases they have settled out of court. Again, you want an attorney that has a great record.
Affiliations with your spouse
Does the attorney you are looking to hire an associate with your spouse? Do they know each other? You need to know this because the attorney might not be right for you.
If the attorney and your spouse have never met and don’t know each other, you can proceed with them, but if the two are childhood friends or shared a room in law school, it would be better to consider hiring someone else.
Their caseload
It’s common for lawyers to have several cases. Of course, they are in business, and the more clients they have, the more business/money they have.
While this is the case, the lawyer shouldn’t have too many cases that they don’t have time to dedicate to your case.
You should know the number of cases they are currently handling and whether they have room for another.
If the attorney is working with other people, you should ask to meet them so you can know the people you will be dealing with.
To make your decision, you should pay attention to the attorney and how they respond to your questions. If you feel they are too busy or keep receiving calls and getting out of the room, you probably should find a less engaged attorney.
When you meet the people working with the attorney, you should listen to your instincts. Do you think they will be the right fit for your case?
Availability of the attorney
You want an attorney that will be available for you when you need them. As much as the attorney has a law degree, it doesn’t mean they are the boss—you are the boss, and you should be able to reach them when you need to easily.
Some attorneys will tell you that you can reach them anytime, but when you start working with them, you realize they are too busy and can’t hold a conversation with them when you want to.
Try getting to them before you start working together to tell whether the attorneys are available. You should call the office to find out whether you can access the attorney easily. If you are having a challenge, it would be better if you could find another lawyer.
The same thing applies if it’s taking the lawyers a long time to get back after you leave a message.
The best divorce lawyers Fairfax VA are easy to get to, and they will respond to your message within 24 hours. If this isn’t the case with your attorney, it would be good to hire another simply.