Selecting a Michigan Divorce Attorney
Choosing a divorce lawyer in Lansing, Eaton, or Clinton County
Selecting a Lansing divorce attorney to handle your family law case is an important decision. Here are a few factors to help you to decide on the right divorce lawyer in Ingham County, Eaton County and Clinton County.
Experience
Any divorce lawyer you consider should have substantial experience in handling Lansing area divorce cases. An experienced divorce attorney in Lansing will know the tendencies of the various judges in the mid-Michigan family courts and can use this knowledge to your advantage. Additionally, that lawyer should practice primarily in the field of divorce law. Often people will hire a lawyer who specializes mostly in some other area, thinking that any lawyer will do. Worse yet is the lawyer that claims to specialize in all areas of the law. However, divorce law is a very specialized field that requires particular skills and experience in order to increase the likelihood of reaching a successful conclusion. Knowing the law is important. Knowing the way the judge likes to run their court room in regards to family law cases is just as important.
Past Client Testimonials
Perhaps the best way to decide which divorce attorney to use for your Lansing, Ingham, Clinton or Eaton County divorce case is to find out what former clients have to say about that lawyer. While divorce is never an enjoyable process, some divorce lawyers have more success at satisfying their clients than others. If you do not know someone who has been a client of that particular divorce lawyer, you should consider asking whether he or she has any client testimonials that describe their experience with the lawyer. Our firm is proud of having been selected to represent other lawyers in their divorce cases, as well as physicians, police officers, prison guards, teachers and professors. Additionally, our firm has represented numerous government employees, factory workers, housewives and mothers, blue collar people and students. In addition to representing people "in the know", our firm is proud to receive family law referral clients from a large number of other attorneys around Michigan and around the country.
Accessible
When a client becomes dissatisfied with a divorce lawyer, one of the most common complaints is that they were unable to communicate with the lawyer. It is very important that your divorce lawyer be accessible and prompt in responding to your phone calls, e-mails, and requests for meetings. While you can ask the divorce lawyer to describe their office policy in this area, this is another topic where you can best evaluate the divorce lawyer by hearing what former clients have to say.
Fees
It is vitally important that you have an open and honest conversation with any divorce attorney about fees and what you can expect. Typically, an experienced Lansing divorce lawyer will require the payment of a substantial retainer up front, against which that lawyer's hourly rate and expenses will be charged. You should find out what that lawyer's hourly rate is, what the upfront retainer will be, whether any portion of the retainer is refundable if it is not exhausted, and how often you can expect to receive invoices that detail the hourly charges and expenses. You also will want to know how detailed and clear the invoices will be. Once again, this is an area where you can get excellent information from those people who have been clients of that Eaton County or Ingham County or Clinton County family law attorney.
Comfortable with the Divorce Lawyer?
While all the above issues are important, there is one final question you should ask yourself before hiring a divorce lawyer in the Lansing area. Are you comfortable with that lawyer and are you confident in his or her abilities? If the answer is anything other than a resounding "yes," you should keep looking. Your case is too important to entrust to someone who does not inspire your confidence.
