Is it Too Early to Meet With a Divorce Attorney?

No one wants to give up on marriage. Yet there often comes a time when divorce seems like a
real possibility. Marriages break down for a variety of reasons, including incompatibility,
financial difficulties, and infidelity. At some point, you seem to be arguing more than you are
enjoying each other’s company.

At Hodges Coxe Potter &; Phillips, we meet regularly with people who have been served divorce
papers and express confusion and fear about the future. Chances are, they would have been better
positioned to deal with the divorce had they met with a divorce attorney sooner.

The answer to the question, “Is it too early to meet with a divorce attorney?” is an emphatic
“NO.”

Meeting with an Attorney Does Not Commit You to Divorce
By meeting with a lawyer, you are not signing up for divorce. No one can force you to divorce,
least of all an attorney, so there is no risk to your marriage by taking a confidential meeting with
a potential divorce lawyer.
The purpose of meeting with a lawyer is largely informational:

Do you know what you are entitled to in a divorce under North Carolina law?
● Do you know what assets are marital property and what is your own separate property?
● Can you get child custody if you divorce?
● Can you obtain alimony? Will you have enough money to support yourself if you have to
set up your own household?
Without answers to these questions, you might be paralyzed when and if you are ever served
with divorce papers. By meeting with a lawyer, you can set your mind at ease.

Meeting with an Attorney Allows You to Protect Yourself
Once someone files for divorce, things can get complicated quickly. Your spouse might
immediately clean out joint bank accounts or suddenly rack up huge charges on joint credit
cards. If you decide to go ahead with a divorce, you need to know what steps to take in the
following days to protect yourself financially. Meeting with an attorney now can provide you
with that information.

An Early Meeting with an Attorney can Help in a Custody Fight
Nothing is worse than two parents fighting over the children. Ideally, couples will split amicably
and come to a custody arrangement that works for everyone, your children foremost. But this is
simply not always possible. Instead, one spouse decides to play hardball and tries to get sole
custody.
By meeting now with an attorney, you can identify what evidence you will need to establish that
you have a close bond with your child. You will also know what evidence is helpful in showing
that your spouse should not have custody.

Does this sound like you are preparing for divorce? In a way, it does. But it is better to be safe
than sorry. Meeting early with an attorney lets you build a strong evidentiary case for your rights
as a parent.

Contact a Wilmington Divorce Lawyer Today
Hodges Coxe Potter & Phillips is a leading family law firm in Wilmington, North Carolina. We
have helped many men and women successfully complete a divorce, and we are available if you
want to talk about your options today.
To schedule a confidential consultation, please call 910-772-1678.