Selecting a divorce attorney is a vital decision making process. The person who you take on will be liable for obtaining or maintaining your custody rights to your children, your property interests, and depending upon the side you are one, either minimizing or maximizing your support rights. In reality, choosing a divorce attorney is also an very stressful experience. You have to be right in choosing your attorney otherwise you will have to suffer a lot. The very first step in selecting your attorney is to identify your case. Next, start asking people for help. Since the divorce rate in the United States is at about 50%, chances are you know at least several people who have been through a divorce. Ask about their process, how they selected a divorce attorney, and how their attorney performed for them.

After getting the list of attorneys from other persons you should start looking for their profile from the internet by visiting their websites. Many divorce attorneys have websites, write articles, and advertise on divorce portal websites. By visiting their websites you come to know how they deal in different cases and some of them had posted case study to know what’s are the different tactics used by them to deal different type of cases. After you have reviewed the divorce attorney websites, make a list of at least two and as many as five divorce attorneys who you think you will be comfortable speaking with. Take appointment by calling in their offices in working hours. Some of those attorneys will charge you for a consultation; the more experience the attorney has, the more likely that you will have to pay for time with that attorney.

When you attend a discussion with a divorce attorney, be prepared. prepare a small history of your case which going to help you out while discussing your case with him/her. If you or your spouse has filed any papers in court, make sure you bring them with you. Bring one or two years tax returns or a recent financial statement so that the divorce attorney can review some of your financial data before being asked questions about “results”.

Make sure you ask each divorce attorney questions about how that attorney’s office operates in response to client phone calls, emails, or other inquiries or needs. If you will be working with a divorce attorney who has no other attorney in their office, be prepared to wait in line when you have a need for a response. That attorney will have other clients who have needs just as significant as yours, and an attorney can be responsive to only one client at a time. Even with that disadvantage, there may be a divorce attorney who you feel is just right for you who is also a solo practitioner. That is a trade off that you may have to get comfortable with.

Family Law is a specialty that not all lawyers have experience in. If you are going through a divorce and having issues with custody you want to find an attorney that knows family law. When a married couple with children divorce, they are both legally entitled to full involvement in their child’s life and in decisions affecting their upbringing. The absent parent has an automatic right to know where their child is living and to see them on a regular basis. He/she will have a legal right to certain information such as school and medical reports. These factors are designed to benefit the child, meaning they have the advantages of being with both parents.

If separated parents were not married, then the Mother has automatic parental responsibility. This means that the Father’s rights are not the same as married Father’s. He cannot prevent his child from taking their Mother’s surname, even if he/she previously had his surname. The Father is also unable to take his child abroad on holiday, and has no say in the child’s religion or school. If fact he could have no say in the child’s life what so ever. He doesn’t even have an automatic right to look after his child if the child’s Mother dies. Unmarried Father’s are treated similarly to step-father’s even though the are the biological Father.

There are of course exceptions to these general rules. The law regarding unmarried Father’s has changed with regards to children born since 1st December 2003. If a Father’s name appears on the birth certificate and his child was born after this date he has the same legal rights as a previously married Father. However the law for children born prior to this date remains the same.

There are exceptional circumstances where divorced Father’s are not given their normal rights. These will be cases where it is considered in the child’s best interests that their Father does not have such as active involvement, or no involvement as all. Meanwhile there are ways in which unmarried Father’s can request more involvement. The agreement of the child’s Mother is the most obvious, and most Mother’s are happy for the Father to have an active role. However, if the Mother does not agree it can be very difficult for the Father. They might then have to resort to getting a court order to force the Mother to allow access.

Many are surprised when they hear of the lack of rights that unmarried Father’s have. The good news for Father’s who will be in this position in the future is that the law has changed since December 2003. However, the difficulties to those Father’s with children born previously to this are still the same as they always have been. The reason stated for both parents being involved in their child’s future if they were previously married is that it is for the good of the child. Surely then, the same should apply to unmarried Father.