The family law regulations require that at least one party is represented by a lawyer (so-called compulsory lawyer) in the event of a divorce. This is exactly where it becomes interesting for the spouses who want to be divorced by mutual consent.
So the wives and husbands who are not fighting a war of roses have already discussed and clarified the consequences of their divorce out of court. The consequences of divorce are usually the equalization of gains or the distribution of assets, child support, post-marital support, or custody of the children.
1. The consensual divorce
Many spouses who want to be divorced by mutual agreement have agreed on separation and the consequences of divorce in advance. In this pre-divorce marriage contract, the consequences of the divorce have been mutually regulated.
As a rule, nothing stands in the way of a legal divorce without a dispute. A consensual divorce is also a regular divorce proceeding with a spouse filing for divorce. In this application for divorce, the spouses are named, and the lawyer tells the court which of the spouses they are representing.
2. The court costs
The applicant spouse will then receive an advance invoice for court costs. In a divorce, the applicant must always pay the court costs (costs of the court proceedings and the judge) in advance.
In most cases, the court costs are divided equally between the spouses after the divorce proceedings have been concluded, i.e., the court costs are equalized at the end of the divorce.
The advancing spouse gets a portion of the advance back. As soon as the court costs advance is paid, the divorce application is served Birmingham AL divorce lawyer. This spouse can then inform the court in writing that they also want to be divorced.
3. The pension equalization
Depending on whether the spouses have regulated or excluded the pension equalization (equalization of pension entitlements during the marriage) in advance through a notarized contract, the court will still carry out the so-called pension equalization or not.
If the pension equalization is carried out, both spouses receive questionnaires from the court about their pension entitlements. You must fill this out and send it back to the court.
4. The divorce date
The attorney applying is present at the divorce hearing and repeats their application for divorce. The spouse who has not brought a lawyer explains to the court themselves that they also want a divorce.
The family judge will announce a divorce decree. This divorce decree is served on the spouses by the court. Both then still have the opportunity to appeal the complaint within one month. However, since the spouses have agreed to this day that they want a divorce; an appeal in the event of mutual divorce is rare.
5. When is it worth hiring a joint divorce lawyer?
The advantages of an amicable divorce can lie in the amicable distribution of legal fees. If both spouses have hired a lawyer, each lawyer will provide their client with a cost accounting for their work.
Even a lawyer engaged in an amicable divorce is required only to charge their client for their costs. The spouse who engages the lawyer is also obliged to pay the lawyer’s fees. Hiring only one lawyer in an amicable divorce and distributing the costs between the spouses is therefore economical.
6. Married couples should seek advice beforehand
You can generally get advice from a family law attorney on how much a divorce costs. Whether your marriage and the possible consequences of the divorce are suitable for an amicable divorce with only one lawyer can often be better decided after the consultation. The decision should not be made hastily.
The broad field of divorce consequences and their economic impact is often unfamiliar territory, especially for legal laypeople. The first consultation with a family lawyer can bring light into the darkness.