Divorce can be a messy business, and states like Arizona have their own specific laws about
how and why it can happen. In some cases, there might even be extra stages added where you have to provide proof of your claims or find a way to justify what you are asking for. A
lawyer can help with all of that, but what do they actually do for you?
Lawyers and Divorces
Lawyers are often specialized in certain fields, and lawyers with a particular focus on divorce
law are quite common throughout many areas of the world. One of these lawyers is more than just a legal advisor, but somebody who knows all about the local divorce processes and how they are supposed to work.
When dealing with divorce, tensions run high, and your patience for delays or mistakes can
be very, very low. Trying to do the entire process yourself can result in a lot of problems, and even if you navigate through all the legal text, you can end up creating an agreement that you are not happy with.
With a proper lawyer, this becomes a lot easier because they can do the bulk of the work as
long as they know what you and your (former) partner want from the divorce. This speeds
everything up and can take the pressure off you, but why is a lawyer so important?
Divorces and Legal Separations
There is only one ‘official’ reason for divorce in Arizona, and that is when a couple is so
irreconcilable that they can’t maintain the relationship in any form. This can be due to major
violent fights with one another, serious differences in how they treat each other, or anything
else that leaves the connection broken and unable to be fixed.
In all other cases, a divorce is legally classed as a legal separation: this changes things
slightly, and a lawyer is extremely important if you are trying to work around this distinction
well. If you are prepared for a regular divorce, you might end up not actually getting one and have to separate instead.
Dissolution and Contesting
The Petition for Dissolution is something that a couple files when they are no longer wanting to stay together, and the marriage can’t be saved through any practical means. Often, only one person in the relationship files the petition, but it can be both if the divorce is mutual.
A lawyer is there to manage the contested divorces. Uncontested divorces need a lawyer too, but these are very simple and straightforward. When a divorce is contested, one half of the relationship is opposing the petition, usually by trying to claim that the marriage is fine or that a full divorce is not necessary.
When this happens, the situation enters Discovery: the period where the lawyer helps gather
evidence to support the cases being made, with the end result of either allowing the divorce
ahead or preventing it and turning it into a different kind of legal situation.
Orders
Lawyers are also vital for handling temporary orders. These are short-lived ‘law’ snippets
that apply to a particular relationship and can map out things like who pays the bills, who
lives in the couple’s original home, and where children are going to live. If a couple agrees
with the situation, these can become permanent orders after the ‘trial’ is over.
However, a lawyer is usually needed to make these fair and to prevent one side of the
arrangement from misusing it to lock the other out of things they desperately need. They can also point out any breaches of the law that might come from how possessions are shared.
Custody
No matter what else you need in a divorce, child custody is incredibly hard to sort out without a lawyer. A decent divorce lawyer is going to be experienced in working out who gets custody of a child and will always put them first, even if it means having to compromise on both parents’ preference.
If you want what is best for your child and are afraid that your partner may misuse their stake in the argument, then a proper lawyer can be the solution, especially in divorces where you won’t have easy ways to contact your partner directly.