Are you needing a family lawyer? If you are, maybe you’re confused by the consultation process with a lawyer? When it comes to family law, and any law in general, it’s a big deep blue ocean of processes that can be very difficult to understand. During a difficult time of your life, a lawyer consultation can cause significant pain.
But do not worry, we have all the information you will need to know before you start the consultation process so it can be as easy and pain-free as possible.
What Is Family Law?
In a nutshell, and staying away from all the complicated technical legal linguistics, family law helps you resolve any legal problems or issues involving your family. These problems include:
- Separation and divorce
- Child custody disputes
- Property ownership or property settlement
- Financial settlements
These problems when fixed by a family lawyer or the family law courts will come in the forms of:
- Family court proceedings
- Drafting legally binding financial agreements and documents
- Domestic violence
- Child protection
- Spousal maintenance
What Is A Family Lawyer?
Based on the definition of what family law is above, a family advice lawyer is someone that manages and handles all of those legal proceedings for you. No one expects you to know what to do in family law court, and that is why the best thing to do is to hire a good family lawyer.
A good family lawyer won’t just direct you on legal advice though, a good family lawyer should provide you with a complete support network which you can rely on.
The specialisations of family lawyers include:
- Divorce lawyer
- De facto lawyer
- Separation lawyer
- Child custody lawyer
- Child protection lawyer
- Wills and estates lawyer
- VRO lawyer
Why Would You Need A Family Lawyer?
Family lawyers will help you with all of the points made in the section above in this article, however the main reason for someone needing a family lawyer is in the case of a separation or divorce. If you want to know if you need a mediator, or you want a deeper understanding of what a family lawyer will help you with, read more here. If you’re wondering; “how can a family lawyer help you” the main way they will help is with:
Divorce Applications
Divorce rates have only continued to go up and up. The phrases “how does family law work in Australia” and “how do you get a divorce in Australia” are the most searched on Google when it comes to family law.
Stay away from Google and untrustworthy Wikipedia pages, and instead let a family law professional handle it. A divorce lawyer can also help with:
- Solo applications for divorce
- Joint applications for divorce
- Negotiate in court for your behalf
- Assist splitting liabilities and assets
- Provide you with the best outcome in your divorce
3 Tips Before You See A Family Lawyer
What are the tips for hiring a family law attorney? Don’t overwhelm yourself with thoughts like “how do I prepare for my first meeting with a lawyer?” Lawyers aren’t scary money-mosquitos that are only focused on your bank account, well the good ones aren’t anyway. A good lawyer is there to help you through your struggle and make it as easy and pain-free as possible.
Before you see a lawyer, if you aren’t sure what to prepare or bring, simply just ask them. However, here are some things that are good to get ready as a rule of thumb:
- Understand What You Are Trying To Achieve
Why are you seeing your family lawyer for divorce, or any other reason? Thinking about your goals and what you want to get from your lawyer will give you the best chance for success. Ask yourself these questions to outline a clear objective:
- What is the most important thing/things to you and your children?
- What do you want to get out of the sessions in the short and long terms?
- What are you concerned about in the short and long terms?
- What is your plan B if things don’t go to plan?
- Create A List Of Questions To Ask Your Lawyer
What are good questions to ask lawyers? Absolutely anything. It’s a cliche that is thrown around a lot these days, but it is absolutely true, especially with legal proceedings; but there are no bad questions.
Any questions that come to mind, no matter how significant and well thought out they are, or how surface level they are, write them down and ask your lawyer.
A great idea is to compile these questions into an email and send them to your lawyer before your consultation so they can have them answered and ready for you.
- Gather All The Key Information You Can
To be as prepared as you can be for the consultation with your lawyer, you should gather all financial information that you can. If you aren’t splitting amicably and there is a history of improper treatment, you should gather all anecdotal evidence and stories of your partner, particularly if you are filing for a VRO.
You should gather:
- Estimates on assets
- Estimates on liabilities
- Estimates on expenses
- Estimates on superannuations
- Bank statements
- Yours and your partner’s income
- Stories for VRO (if needed)
The 4 Step Process For Family Law Consultation With A Family Lawyer
Step 1: Schedule A Consultation
The first step to relieve your pain is to book a consultation with a family law professional. Browse online and do your research, then fill out a consultation form.
Step 2: You Will Receive Confirmation
Usually with a call, your selected law firm will make confirmation for your first consultation. During this step they will ask you a few questions to align you with the best lawyer to satisfy your needs.
Step 3: Sit Through The Consultation
Now is the time to tell your lawyer everything they need to know about your situation, as well as any concerns. Your lawyer will then provide you with legal advice and the supportive information you will need.
Step 4: Legal Plan
Your lawyer will then provide you with a plan and complete breakdown of your legal rights moving forward. This will include possible outcomes, what can be achieved, as well as risks involved. You will then decide if you wish to proceed.
Where To Hire A Family lawyer?
Don’t let Google search stand in as your family lawyer. The information out there is incomprehensive and untrustworthy.
So how do you find a family lawyer you can trust and rely on? With so many family law firms in Perth, it can be hard to find one who will understand and listen to your situation.
Savannah Legal offers a free 1 hour consultation and we take the time to understand your situation, concerns and needs, before providing you with a legal plan outlining your options. Our goal is to give you affordable legal advice while lifting a burden off your shoulders. Book your free consultation today.
If you still have questions, such as; “how much does a family lawyer cost” and “how long does family court take in Australia”, we can help.
