**Benefits of Choosing an Aggressive Family Law Attorney**
Aggressive representation in family law is more than just a buzzword. The complexities of family law matters mean that, oftentimes, your best interests must be fought for to ensure the most favorable outcome. Not every case is contested or adversarial, but when they are, it requires an assertive, experienced, and resourceful attorney to handle. Family law attorneys with a strong track record of fighting for their clients and delivering results can prove to be an invaluable asset.
Individuals who are going through a difficult divorce or have complex issues at play simply need aggressive family law representation. From negotiating a fair settlement on property division to vigorously contesting child custody, one small slip – or the inexperience of your current representation – can result in long-term negative consequences for you.
Your attorney should understand the goals you have for the case , and work hard to achieve them. An aggressive strategy does not mean alienating your former partner to the point where they refuse to negotiate, but it does mean being firm, tough, and breaking down issues piece by piece to arrive at a solution without compromisation.
This may mean asserting your rights in negotiating a fair spousal support order, determining how property, assets, and debts will be disbursed, and preventing your former partner or spouse from engaging in behaviors that may impact custody or visitation (such as substance abuse or withholding your children).
The end goal is to help families move on, leaving behind any resentment or emotions associated with the breakdown of the marriage to enjoy their new life to the fullest.
**Main Services Offered by an Aggressive Family Law Attorney**
Aggressive family law attorneys offer a wide array of services that can address a multitude of issues. Of course, divorce representation is the most common service. Those getting divorced frequently need help with all aspects of the legal divorce process. Screened partners can assist during one or both sides of the negotiation process. If the divorce requires dividing a number of assets, such as commercial real estate, bank portfolios, even pensions, highly competent screened partners also have extensive experience doing forensic accounting and asset divisions.
But, many people require aggressive family law attorneys because they are facing a custody battle with a former spouse. Unfortunately, many divorces turn ugly, resulting in the parties fighting for every aspect of their children’s lives. Does the child get to live with mom? Where will the child go to school? Should there be joint custody? Do the grandparents get visitation rights? The list of questions can go on for pages and should only be handled by aggressive family law attorneys who deal with these issues day in and day out.
People also hire aggressive family law attorneys to settle alimony and spousal support disputes. One side may want to continue living a lifestyle to which they were accustomed during the marriage. Another side may want to pay as little alimony or spousal support as possible. Of course, factors like incomes, standard of living during the marriage, any pre- or post-nuptial agreements and tax implications can all affect how alimony is paid and who pays it.
Besides alimony and spousal support, many aggressive family law attorneys can help with protection and restraining orders. These unfortunate events can happen during any marriage, but many aggressive family law attorneys have helped people stave off former spouses who threaten violence.
**How to Make Yourself Aware of a Skilled & Aggressive Family Law Attorney**
In your quest to find an aggressive family law attorney near you, start large. Seek out information about attorneys all over the state, then focus on those near your home or business. Focus on those in your home county and branch out into neighboring states. Set up interviews with at least 5 attorneys who tell you that they do family law and that they have significant experience in litigating cases in divorce, child custody, and related matters. During the interview, the attorney should ask you about your situation and then listen carefully to your story. He or she should then ask you what you are seeking and advise you as to whether those particular matters are obtainable. The attorney should then outline how he or she approaches similar cases and the general strategy that he or she would implement in your situation. If you are not comfortable in the interview or beginning consultations, trust your instincts. If you already have a feeling about who you want to hire, listen to your gut, but conduct further research beyond the interview process. Seek recommendations from friends, coworkers, and acquaintances. If you get a recommendation from someone who is close to you, go ahead and search for further validation through online sources such as avvo.com and/or lawyers.com. You can also review online ratings and other metrics to evaluate attorneys. Attorneys who provide a difficult or time consuming experience do not gain high reviews online. Keep in mind that an attorney with a high rating in professional conduct may be offering a less than stellar service in being aggressive for your benefit. Once you have narrowed your list of candidates, set up initial consultations. During the interview and consultation process look for signs of aggressiveness or lack thereof. The following indicators may suggest that the aggressiveness of your potential candidate is not the right fit: He or she focuses on the price of services without any mention of approach or strategy; He or she does not attempt to learn much about you or your situation; He or she names other clients in your industry – even if not by name; He or she rushes you out of the office; He or she doesn’t stop talking when you try to ask questions; He or she argues with you and/or makes you feel bad about your situation; He or she refuses to take a stand – even for issues that seem obvious; He or she blames the other side for the situation or complains about other lawyers, former clients, and/or judges; and he/she jumps to conclusions without fully hearing the whole story. In general, do you feel you can be open and honest with this person about your situation – and will they be open and honest with you about their assessment? Does he or she seem to care about you and your situation? Ask questions about the aggressiveness of his or her strategy and check the internet again for evidence of aggressiveness and claims made by other clients. Check the State Bar to determine if there is any history of complaints or grievances. If you get a bad feeling about the attorney, or can’t imagine being open and honest with him or her, move on to another candidate.
**Does Having Local Experience Matter in Family Law Cases?**
When selecting a family law attorney, knowledge of how the local courts operate is vital to the disposition of your case. This is especially true if you and the other party live in different counties. Many counties have very different local rules, case loads, and trial procedures. Someone with in-state or out-of-state experience who does not regularly practice in the county where your case is filed may not be familiar with these court-specific requirements and may not be able to help you as much as an attorney who is familiar with your local court and the dynamics therein .
Some attorneys from other jurisdictions also practice before courts with different jurisdictional limits. For example, some attorneys only practice in the courts of states where equitable distribution does not apply to small estates. Be sure that your attorney specializes in an area that affects you (equitable distribution, premarital agreements, custody, etc.) and is authorized to provide such services in your state.
**What Questions to Ask a Potential Family Law Attorney**
You can help narrow down the list of attorneys to interview by asking them questions during an initial consultation. You can even use these questions to assess their aggressiveness, to a degree. While most people think that "aggressive" means "conflictual," that’s not necessarily the case. First of all, not every attorney who’s aggressive is conflictual in the way that most people think of conflictual. For example, I’m very much an advocate for my clients. I want to win and I don’t shy away from that. But I also value substantive conflict as a dispute resolution method. In other words, if I believe that my client is "right", meaning he or she has the law on their side, I’m not overly concerned about letting the other party believe that they’re "right", too. If that means conceding to the other party that they, indeed, have the right to a piece of property, I don’t have a problem doing that, because I know that my client will walk away from the negotiation with a greater asset value in his/her favor. So, don’t assume that simply because an attorney is willing to allow the other side that win, that he/she is conflictual, or aggressive, about everything.
So, here are some questions that you can ask to assess an attorney’s aggressiveness:
What conflicts do you anticipate could arise in the case and how would you handle them? We all tend to think that an attorney’s job is to ensure that there are no conflicts. But that’s not actually true. Sometimes having some conflict is good! The real question is how the attorney will deal with the conflicts that arise. Will she try to work collaboratively with the other side to resolve the issues? Or will she go straight to battle? And how will she inform you about her approach to resolution as a client? Will she keep you in the loop about how she intends to interact with the other side? And will she listen to your input about the conflicts and how they should be addressed along the way? Communication is key!
If you and the other side are unable to resolve the conflicts, how (not whether!) might this matter be resolved? If I’ve learned anything in my 13+ years of practicing family law, it’s that we may be able to resolve 90% of the legal issues that arise in a divorce, but there’s always that pesky 10% that has to be litigated, one way or another. So you need to have an attorney that can bring that litigation and court process when needed. Ask the attorney how the court process works and what it will look like. Are there a ton of court hearings? Will there be a lot of discovery? Expect the attorney to discuss these questions with you. You want a full picture of the process and all of the time requirements you should expect. And remember – the more hearings you have, the more conflict will arise and the more expensive the process will be.
How do you strategize for the beginning of the case? For me, the beginning strategy is very important. That’s when the attorney is most like the dam at the top of the river – holding back a lot of water and tension between the parties about to break through when the actual litigation process begins. Everybody knows that when there’s talk of a breakup, there’s going to be a lot of emotion that arises. We want to keep the flood waters at bay and the parties working with one another as much as possible. Therefore, how the attorney begins the process – including how quickly we file the papers with the court and what we say at the case initiation stage – is crucial. It sets up the entire case for success or failure.
**Finding Aggressive Family Law Attorneys In Your Area**
Finding aggressive family law attorneys in your area is possible through a variety of resources. These can include online research, legal directories, and referrals from local bar associations. First, you can search online to find aggressive family law attorneys in your area. Use keywords like "aggressive family lawyer" or "family attorney" followed by your city and state. There are many law firms that have areas of practice like divorce, custody, paternity, and child support. These law firms will probably have something with "family law" in their name, so they should be aggressive inside all of their family law matters. Another good source of information is legal directories. You can try websites like Findlaw , LexisNexis, Avvo, and Justia. The information on these sites includes what type of practice the attorney is involved with, their accomplishments, their biography, as well as their firm information. The final way you can locate aggressive family law attorneys in your area is by using referrals from local bar associations. These associations normally have a lawyer referral service. Call them and they will provide you with four local names as well as their contact information. Like the online directories, these referrals are usually broken down into several areas of practice, so they can help you find exactly what you are looking for.