Divorce can be expensive. There are ways to keep your costs down without having to get an attorney that won't give you adequate representation.

You can keep the cost down by doing some of the legwork in your divorce case. 

Collect Legal Documents for Your Attorney

First, collecting and providing complete legal documents your attorney needs will cut your legal costs.

For example, at the beginning of the case, your attorney may ask you for

• 6 months of bank statements

• 2 years of tax returns

• 6 months of pay stubs

• 6 months of credit card statements etc. 

Collecting all these documents and records is tedious. If you're able to collect these documents quickly efficiently, and completely, that will save on the cost of your attorney collecting and verifying these necessary documents, which can add up quickly.

Collect Documents for the Discovery Process

You can also help cut costs during the Discovery process by helping gather the documents that your attorney will need. In many cases the parties end up exchanging formal request for information which are called Discovery requests. These requests can be complex extremely time-consuming to respond to. If you have to deal with Discovery requests, it may be in your best interest to work with your attorney to make sure these are handled appropriately.

However, you can save yourself thousands of dollars in attorneys fees by responding thoroughly and in an organized fashion to these Discovery requests.

Choose Your Battles

Another way to save money on legal fees is choosing your battles. Divorce is much like a business negotiation. During divorce, you can save a lot of money by focusing on the things that are the most important to you, and choosing not to fight about things that are less important. This allows you and your attorney to invest your time and energy on fighting for the things that are most important to you.

Whenever possible, avoid unnecessary arguments and do your best to cooperate with your spouse. This can help you save a lot on your attorney fees. Some situations, such as high-conflict divorces, can make avoiding conflict challenging.

However, even in high-conflict divorces, it’s possible to engage in de-escalation strategies instead of reacting to each spiteful argument your spouse makes. If you choose to involve your attorney and respond officially to these arguments, you will really increase your attorney's fees.

If you’re in the Seattle, Washington area and would like to speak to an attorney, give us a call or send us an email.