Contested Divorce

Divorce can be an excruciating process as the partners have to end their relationship and move ahead in life. It is not easy to part ways from the person you loved at one point of time and ending the relationship because of mere misunderstandings is not the right thing to be done but sometimes the problems are so many in a relationship that parting ways in the only solution to get rid of a painful relationship. Contested divorce is the form of divorce in which the ex-partners fight with each other in the court in order to get things sorted out. Proper division of things is done so that no problem occurs in the future. A lawyer is hired so that he can counsel them both and find a convenient solution for them.

Some of the issues that are contested in a divorce proceeding of a contested divorce are as follows.

• Custody of children
• Child support
• Whether alimony should be paid and how much?
• Who should you repay the debts?
• The distribution of the acquired assets

All these conflicting issues increase the time and money needed for the divorce. The more the number of issues that are in dispute, the more complicated the divorce becomes and the duration of the divorce increases. When any person embarks on a contested divorce, he/she must be ready for an exhaustive financial and emotional drain.

It is acknowledged that a contested divorce has begun when the below mentioned procedure is complete.

• One of the spouses files a petition for divorce as this is the first step of taking divorce.
• This petitioner serves the other spouse with the divorce papers via a third party or a sheriff or by mail.
• The service of the divorce papers implies that the divorce can be contested or the various issues in the divorce can be contested.

The spouse who gets the serving of the divorce papers is called as the Respondent or Defendant. Generally, this respondent is given a time period of 30 days from the date of service to provide a response to the divorce papers. In the given time the partner has to respond back stating his agreement or disagreement regarding the case.

In any divorce case, the spouses seeking divorce have an opportunity to talk with each other and settle the terms of the divorce amicably. If they fail to do so, they have to approach the court. This now becomes a contested divorce case. The judge decides how the various issues must be addressed. The future of these spouses is completely in the control of the legal system.

Lawyers play an important role in this sort of divorce. They are actively involved in a process called as Discovery. This comprises of demanding financial records, tax returns and bank statements of the other spouse. The lawyers also interview the client's friends, coworkers and if essential, the children and their teachers and coaches. An attorney should be kept in loop before taking any major decision as they have the complete knowledge about the laws prevailing in the state.

Those couples who decide to attend a trial need to wait for even 12 months to obtain a trial date. When this date approaches, the lawyer makes the essential plan for testimony of the client. In a highly contested case, it is recommended not to represent self, but to avail the services of a lawyer.