Divorce Costs Archives - Divorce Utah

How much are the typical fees for a divorce?

June 30, 2020

Divorce Costs, Divorce Fears, Divorce Lawyers, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness

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How much are the typical fees for a divorce? According to lawyers.com, as reported June 18, 2019, the average cost of a divorce in my jurisdiction where I practice divorce law (Utah) is $13,200. This is based upon an average…

Putting my money where my mouth is: I now offer half-day mediation services free of charge. No strings attached.

June 4, 2020

Divorce Utah

Divorce Costs, Mediation, Settlement

cost, divorce, expensive, free mediation, mediation

Putting my money where my mouth is: I now offer half-day mediation services free of charge. No strings attached. Divorce litigation almost always costs too much. Divorce mediation is now getting out of control too. I cannot offer unlimited…

How can we change the court system in order to make divorces easier on the children?

How can we change the court system in order to make divorces easier on the children? In my opinion: Institute a “loser pays the prevailing party’s attorney’s fees” rule. make divorce cases more litigant focused and tailored to meeting their needs…

Do I have a chance in divorce court without a lawyer? Do I really need one?

A chance? Sure. You have a chance. And you have a chance of winning the lottery, just not a very good chance of it. You may not want to read the rest of my answer because I am a lawyer,…

Why is it so common for parents to become outright enemies after divorce?

Why is it so common for parents to become outright enemies after a divorce? I have represented people in divorce who were pure as the driven snow, innocent as lambs, and treated miserably by their spouses, by law enforcement, by…

What are some reasons for offering pro bono legal services?

March 24, 2020

Divorce Utah

Attorney Fees, Divorce Attorneys, Divorce Costs, Divorce Lawyers, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness

pro bono, pro bono legal services, pro se

While I provide some pro bono assistance (but not exclusively), I don’t like providing most kinds of pro bono legal services. I know I’m not alone in feeling this way. Candidly, most pro bono clients in my experience ranked among…

Who is responsible for debt when you get a divorce or if you break up?

Who is responsible for debt when you get a divorce or if you break up? For the jurisdiction where I practice law (Utah), the law governing who can be made responsible for the payment of marital debts in divorce is very…

Should I be nice to my spouse during a divorce?

That depends on what you mean by “nice”. Do you mean “with kindness”? Not necessarily kindness, but certainly decency. You are morally obligated to treat your spouse with decency, but you don’t have to go out of your way to…

Must I engage in all-day divorce mediation or some other time period?

Must I engage in all-day mediation in my divorce action, or for some other specific time period? No, there is no mandatory minimum period of time you must spend in mediation. You don’t have to stay in all-day mediation or…

Is a divorce easier when you’re both poor?

February 19, 2020

Divorce Utah

Divorce Costs, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness

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Usually. When there’s nothing worth fighting over then it makes sense to make a fair deal or just walk away, rather than throwing good money after bad fighting over things that are worth less than the cost of your legal…

If your parents are divorced, what are the chances you will be?

Much, much higher than if your parents had not divorced. See Psychology Today February 5, 2019: “Research shows that children of divorce are more likely to experience a divorce themselves. The statistics vary, but one study by researchers Paul Amato and Danelle…

Can I protect marital assets from my spouse by “temporarily gifting” them?

November 15, 2019

Divorce Utah

Dirty Tricks, Divorce Costs, Divorce Fears, Divorce Law, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness, Marital Property

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Can I protect marital assets from my spouse by “temporarily gifting” assets to somebody else until after the divorce is final? Can you? Like is it doable? Sure, you can do it. And many divorcing people do this very thing successfully (meaning they get…

Why are divorce papers so long?

November 3, 2019

Divorce Utah

Coping With Divorce, Divorce Costs, Divorce Preparedness, Divorce Procedure

divorce paperwork, documents, length, longeur

While it is true that some lawyers write up needlessly long divorce documents just to pad their bills, even the most efficient and honest lawyers often find themselves having to draft (write) documents that are longer than most people want…

Has anyone you know been framed for domestic violence?

November 1, 2019

Divorce Utah

Abuse, Amicable Divorce, Dirty Tricks, Divorce Costs, Divorce Fears, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness, Domestic Violence, Men's Divorce Issues, Mental Illness, Protective Orders, Utah Law, Women's Divorce Issues

I’m a divorce and family lawyer, and so the crimes I see people framed for or manipulated into “committing” are domestic violence types. It’s frighteningly easy to do. Before I go any further, I note: virtually every time I write…

Should we put divorcing couples in an adversarial divorce court system?

People who are getting divorced fall into one of two categories: those who want to divorce while doing each other as little harm as possible; and those who don’t care what happens to their spouses in divorce and who are…

Can I ask a lawyer, “Would you elaborate your legal fees?”?

Of course you can ask the attorney to explain the basis for his/her legal fees and services pricing. Any attorney worth his/her salt and who has the requisite amount of humility and empathy will be willing to provide you with…

Can you fire your divorce lawyer? Yes!

October 11, 2019

Divorce Utah

Coping With Divorce, Divorce Attorneys, Divorce Costs, Divorce Fears, Divorce Lawyers, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness

attorney, client, deserve, divorce, equitable, fair, fire, greedy, incompetent, lawyer, mediocre, unrealistic, unreasonable, want

Fire your lawyer? What can you do if you think your lawyer is doing a bad job representing you? Can you fire your lawyer? Your question is really two questions, and they’re both good questions: 1. If you think your lawyer is…

Can you describe divorce in 3 words?

October 9, 2019

Divorce Utah

Divorce Costs, Divorce Fears, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness

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Costlier than anticipated. Utah Family Law, LC | divorceutah.com | 801-466-9277 https://www.quora.com/Can-you-describe-divorce-in-3-words/answer/Eric-Johnson-311

Why doesn’t family law immediately use collaborative law practices to reach decisions?

Because 1) paradoxically, those for whom the true collaborative law process would work best are those who really don’t need collaborative law; and 2) “collaborative law” as it is practiced (as opposed to how it should be practiced) are not the same thing. Now there’s going…

Does an ongoing divorce make one a lame duck at work?

September 19, 2019

Divorce Utah

Divorce Costs, Divorce Fears, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness

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I believe what you mean to ask is, “Does an ongoing Divorce make you unable to focus and be productive at work?” The answer to that question is: for most people, yes. When Divorce Increases Productivity at Work Some people…