What will happen at my initial meeting
with an attorney?
During a consultation with an attorney, you should have a chance
to recount the story of your marriage and the problems that have led
you to seek the advice of a lawyer. In addition to asking for a legal
opinion about your particular situation, you should ask the attorney
about her professional background and experience, particularly in
the area of family law. You should also make sure that you
understand the entire procedure of divorce in your locality. How
long will it take? Will you be dealing with the Friend of the Court?
Do you have to appear at court? Don’t be ashamed to take notes.
If you’re dealing with a good lawyer, you’ll be getting a lot of
information in a short amount of time, and you want to make
sure that you remember as much as possible later.

Make sure to provide the lawyer with all information that you think
could be relevant to your divorce action. Let the lawyer decide if it’s
unimportant. It’s better to err on the side of providing too much
information than to leave out something that could have been
important to your case. It’s best if you can compile the important
documents and facts before your consultation so that it is organized
and easy for the lawyer to understand. If you hire the lawyer and
she needs more information than you’ve provided, be sure to get
the missing information to her as soon as possible.

Of course, you need to make sure that you understand the
attorney’s fee structure. How much is the retainer? What happens
if fees exceed the initial retainer amount? What is the likelihood
that your spouse will have to contribute to the payment of your
attorney fees? These are just a few questions you should ask
about fees during this initial meeting.

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The information contained on this website is intended to be of a general
nature, and may not address the specific circumstances of a given divorce
case. For specific advice, please contact a local attorney or other appropriate
professional. The provision of information on this website is not intended to
violate any state or local law or regulation regarding the practice of law.