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The Importance of Disclose All To Your Divorce Lawyer

Sep 20, 2019

North Carolina Divorce Lawyers

Full disclosure isn’t always in your best interest, but when it comes to discussing your divorce case with your attorney, you should always tell the complete truth. The issues of your divorce are personal, and you may feel the need to protect your privacy. If your divorce lawyer doesn’t know everything about your case, however, it could make the process even more difficult. In fact, keeping important information from your attorney will often wind up hurting your case.

Before you decide to withhold information from your divorce attorney, make sure you know how failing to disclose key information could harm your case – and your future – in the long run.

Why Does Your Attorney Need To Know?

It’s all about being prepared. You’re trusting your case in the hands of your attorney, and they are using the information you give them to establish a firm, effective strategy to give you the best possible chance of a favorable outcome. However, if your divorce attorney is kept in the dark, they could be blindsided in court or during mediation, making your existing legal strategy less effective and putting your case in jeopardy.

Everything your attorney does is based on the information you choose to share. They cannot prepare for what they don’t know.

The less your attorney knows about your situation, the less they can do to make it work in your favor. For example, if you had an affair during your marriage, but never told your attorney, they won’t know to look out for complications of an affair during your trial, mediation, or negotiations. So, if your spouse begins presenting evidence of the affair (pictures, text messages, and so on) it could undermine the legal argument your attorney had planned on using. If, however, you had told your attorney about the affair from the beginning, they could have changed the legal strategy to better support your side.

When Telling Your Attorney Feels Awkward

Sharing personal information about your marriage with your attorney may feel uncomfortable, but remember that this is their job, and they’ve likely heard it all before. Plus, if you’re feeling bashful, keep in mind that everything you share with your attorney will not be repeated because of client-attorney confidentiality. Whatever information you share will be used only for your own legal benefit, not for gossip or entertainment, so make sure you do your part to help your case.

What Type of Information Should You Share?

Before you meet with your attorney, think about what information could come back to haunt you during your divorce. Did either you or your spouse have an affair? Have you ever been financially dishonest with your spouse, or vice-versa? Was there verbal abuse? Threats? Any instances of domestic violence or child neglect? Have you posted anything publicly about your divorce on social media? While it may be uncomfortable to talk about such things, remember it is in your benefit for your lawyer to know about anything that may be relevant to your case.

If you aren’t sure what you should share and what you shouldn’t, ask your divorce attorney what they need to know. Take comfort in the fact that they have experience in similar situations and are well-equipped to protect your information. Remember, you are both working towards the same goal – securing the best possible outcome for your divorce. By doing what you can to cooperate, you can arm your attorney with the information they need to help your case succeed.

If you are considering your options with divorce, contact King Law Firm for a case evaluation.

 

Child Custody Mediation Program In North Carolina

Sep 18, 2019

North Carolina Family Lawyers

In many North Carolina counties, the individuals in a proceeding related to child custody are required to attend mediation prior to a permanent custody hearing is held. The Court System’s, website states in mediation: “guided conversation that allows people to exchange information and make decisions that can help them avoid going to court.” The custody mediator is a non-biased individual that meets with each party in the custody case in an effort to assist them in reaching an agreement that is agreeable to both and to avoid a contested custody court hearing.

The Process of Mediation

Once a custody or visitation complaint is filed, the court will refer the case to its Custody Mediation Program. The parties must attend an orientation session and one meditation session. Neither party gives up any rights by participating in mediation, nor are the parties required to reach an agreement. The mediator’s role is not to impose a predetermined solution on the parties. Rather, the mediator’s job is to guide the parties towards their own resolution.

Mediation sessions may last for up to two hours. If both parties and the mediator agree, additional sessions may be scheduled. Only the parties attend these sessions, and the discussions are private and confidential. If the parties come to an agreement regarding custody and visitation, the mediator prepares a draft Parenting Agreement for the parties to review with their attorneys. Although the attorneys may not be present during the mediation sessions, the court strongly urges the parties not to sign an agreement until after consulting a lawyer.

Once the parties have signed a Parenting Agreement, a judge must review it as well. If the judge approves, she also signs the agreement and it is incorporated into a court order. If the parties cannot compromise, the case proceeds to a judicial hearing.

Benefits of Custody Mediation

Mediation offers a variety of benefits. First, it allows the parties to avoid the stress and expense of litigation. Moreover, it may provide a template for cooperative co-parenting going forward. The North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, in its Best Practices for Mediation 2014, suggests the following additional benefits derived from participating in custody mediation:

Parents’ co-parenting communication skills and self-determination increase;

Parents are empowered to identify and promote their children’s best interests; and

The emotional toll that litigation takes on families is reduced.

When Is Mediation Not Appropriate?

Custody mediation may not be appropriate in all circumstances. If one party has serious safety concerns for themselves or their children, the parties should not attempt to mediate. In addition, substance abuse or alcoholism by one or both parties may make mediation a poor choice. In those counties with mandatory mediation, the parties must ask to court to waive the mediation requirement.

Concealing Assets Or Income In The Divorce?

Sep 18, 2019

North Carolina Divorce Lawyers

In most divorce cases, one of the parties has more knowledge about finances. Many times, one of the parties has not been involved in the family finances and doesn’t know the extent or nature of the parties’ assets. This spouse’s name may not be on the accounts at financial institutions and thus, that spouse may not have access to the financial information.  If a spouse owns a business, the other spouse may have no knowledge about the business.

It is often said that while two people always get married at the same time, they rarely get divorced at the same time, meaning that one person might have been thinking about it for months or even years, while the other spouse didn’t understand the depth of the problems. A spouse intent on hiding some of the assets thus has a significant head start.

It is the attorney’s job to determine the nature, extent, and value of all the assets. This process generally requires extensive discovery, whether done informally between counsel or through a formal process.  This process can take months and will require the review of possibly hundreds of documents.

There are many ways to hide assets. These could include transferring assets to third parties, opening accounts and having the statements sent to a different address, opening accounts with a third party, overpaying estimated taxes, creating PayPal accounts and depositing large amounts of money there, and buying bit coins.  It could include accumulating cash and not depositing it into any accounts, purchasing gold or other such assets, moving money offshore or creating trusts or LLCs and titling property in the name of those entities.

Having an attorney experienced in dealing with cases in which concealment of assets or income could be an issue is critical to a successful outcome for the client.

If you are considering divorce, you need the advice of an experienced divorce attorney. Contact King Law Firm Today.