Any child custody case is special and should be handled carefully for a number of reasons. First, if it is not done well, it will affect the well being of the child and therefore have detrimental effects on their education and life. Secondly, the parents involved will also be affected of their children are not doing well. Therefore, besides a careful selection of the child custody attorney, you should ensure that the parents understand what is going on and act appropriately to avoid the effects mentioned above.
Unbundled Legal Services
More often than not, the attorneys involved are usually costly and you may not afford the retainer. In this case, you can look for attorneys who offer unbundled legal services. You may ask, what does this mean? Well, you may hire the lawyer to perform specific duties while you take care of the rest of them. This not only reduces the costs involved but also gives you a chance to work on the case and therefore understand it better. It is good to note that unbundled legal services cannot be used for all cases. Therefore evaluation should be made first to determine suitability.
Contested cases
When a case is contested, it is likely to cost more than those that are not contested. In such a case, you are required to have a qualified and experienced child custody attorney. If you are not able to agree on the matter with your spouse, it would be better and cheaper to try mediation first. In some cases, you may present your child custody case in court, only to have the presiding judge refer to you to mediation first. The mediator may be an attorney or any other neutral third party. If after mediation you are have not come up to a conclusion, you can then pursue a court case.
There are other times when you may need the services of a child custody attorney. These include instances where a modification to the terms of custody is eminent, when child support becomes a problem, when one parent moves to a different state or city and many others. The secret is to ensure that you have the best attorney you can afford to ensure a smooth case.