Do I really need a lawyer for an uncontested divorce?

“My spouse and I agree on everything. Why should I spend money to hire an attorney?” If these thoughts came across your mind, you are not alone. But…are you really sure you know what you are doing?

Now, there are certain situations in which an attorney may not be necessary, or may be even wasteful to hire one. Those situations most likely involve cases with little to no debts and assets, no minor children, and a very short term marriage. However, even if your situation matches some or all of these criteria, you may still not be a good candidate for a self-help divorce. The important question is - do you know how to determine if you are a good candidate or not?

The issue is that very few divorces are truly uncontested.

Divorces can be like a tornado. You may have read the forecast and have some idea which direction it may be going. But, even the most experienced meteorologists cannot guarantee that things will go as planned. Why? Because there are factors out of their control. Similarly, while you may have had many conversations with your spouse and have a pretty good idea how you both want the terms to be, you are still not in complete control. You don’t know if the other person may wake up one day and decides that he or she wants to keep the house after all. Or perhaps you have everything written down and suddenly realize that you really don’t feel comfortable with your decision. And, BAM! You now have a contested divorce!

Now, let’s say you’re one of the lucky ones that get all the way to the end without anyone changing his or her mind. Are you really sure you wrote what you meant?

Don’t forget this - your divorce decree is a written legal contract.

So, when you sit down and fill out those forms provided to you from the self-help desk, you are really writing your own legal contract. And once you sign it, you may not have a way out of it, even if the judge hasn’t signed it yet.

While the forms are wonderful to help those without an attorney to not have to reinvent the wheel, they are also rigid and non-conforming. Just like that one-size-fits-all shirt that really doesn’t quite fit anyone. Therefore, unless you have a truly straightforward case that fits, you may run into issues with figuring out where things go and how to word it clearly. You may also end up forgetting to include things that should have otherwise be included because the form did not “remind’ you of it. And the result of filling it out incorrectly may be irreversible.

Therefore, even if you believe your case is uncontested, you should still hire an attorney to help you navigate through the process correctly and draft the documents for you. At the very least, consult with an attorney to determine whether or not your case is truly uncontested before making a decision to do it yourself.

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