The legal practice known as family law focuses on those issues which involve all manner of family relationships. These include adoption, child custody, divorce and many more. Those attorneys who practice family law, like the ones you can find on this website, don’t only represent their clients in a family court proceeding. They also deal with any relatable negotiations and draft such legal documents as property agreements or court petitions. So why would you hire a family law attorney? Here are 5 reasons why.
Divorce
With half of all American marriages failing, the life of the divorce attorney is a busy and lucrative one. Where children are involved, however, the family law attorney will take care of that side of the proceeding. Most parents want their divorces to be as smooth and stress-free as possible to protect their children from any of the backlash, and it’s the job of the family law attorney to try and make that happen.
Child Custody
One of the nastiest aspects of a relationship breakdown is child custody. Whether married or not, if a couple cannot decide who gets custody of the kids it will become a legal matter. If mediation doesn’t work the last step is usually to go to court. The fact that the children involved may have to actually testify and say which parent they want to live with makes many parents stop before it reaches this stage. On the flip side, if one parent is known to be violent or a possible threat to the children the family law attorney will do their best to make sure the other parent gets custody and protect them from the other parent.
Alimony
Alimony payments are one of the most acrimonious parts of the whole divorce process. How much is enough? Is the wife being greedy or trying to claim a reasonable amount? If the alimony payment stops the custodial parent often stops the other seeing the children and that’s when it can get really nasty. A lot of family law attorneys have reported this is their most commonly undertaken work.
Domestic Violence
If you have suffered physical or mental cruelty at the hands of your partner then you should seek the guidance of a family law attorney. In recent years the reported incidents of domestic violence have risen sharply. Many believe this to be due to the recession as with so many losing their jobs, or homes, or both, they have taken out their frustration on their partner. There has also been a marked increase in the males of the partnership being on the receiving end. Again, this has been blamed on the recession with their partners being angry at them no longer supporting the family and resorting to violence. Whether this is true or just being used as an excuse, is for a judge to decide.
Relocation Actions
An example of a relocation issue is if the custodial parent wants to move to another state or country, and take the children with them, the estranged partner may hire an attorney to fight the relocation. Likewise, the custodian may research prior to the move to see what objections the other parent can raise.
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