Family law is an umbrella term that encompasses a number of legal issues that affect families, from divorces and child custody matters to wills and estates. You may never be sued in small claims court, file a lawsuit in civil court, or be the defendant in a criminal court case, but chances are that you will deal with family law in some way at some point in your life. For that reason, it’s important to know when you need help with family law and where to find that help. Not everyone can afford a lawyer, and not every family law matter requires a lawyer – often the people involved can represent themselves if they have the right information and some assistance from another source, such as a legal resource group. Take a look at some of the things that you might need help with when it comes to family law matters.
Document Preparation
For some legal matters, you don’t necessarily have to even go to court. However, you usually do need to submit one or more documents to the court. For example, if you’re divorced with children and you want to make changes to your parenting plan, and your child’s other parent agrees with those changes, you may not need to appear in court, you can just file the amended plan to the court with documentation showing the reasons for the change and that both parents are on board.
But which documents do you need? And how will you know if you filled them out correctly? It can be easy to make mistakes on legal documents if you’re not well-versed in the law, and because it costs money to file documents with the court, mistakes can be expensive. But this is where a legal resource group can come in handy. They’ll know which documents someone in your situation needs and where to get them, and they can help you fill them out to be sure that they’re done correctly and will be accepted by the court. And their services will cost you much less than hiring an attorney to do the same thing.
Preparing For Court
In simple divorce or custody cases, even when you do have to appear in court you may not need an attorney to speak for you. Many people don’t realize that they’re allowed to represent themselves in family court, but that is an option that you have.
Of course, the idea of appearing in any courtroom is nerve-wracking for most people who aren’t trained lawyers. And the idea of speaking in court can make you even more nervous – after all, public speaking is high on the list of fears and phobias for most people. But a legal resource group can offer coaching services to help you prepare to represent yourself in court.
Representing yourself is easier than you may think, especially if you have someone to help you prepare for it. A legal resource group can help you learn enough about court procedures so that you know when you should and should not speak and what to say, and can help you choose your words and arguments carefully so that you can make your case successfully.
Document Storage
Sometimes, family court matters can drag out for a long time. Custody cases, in particular, can take a lot of time and a number of court appearances and filings to resolve, especially when both parties are not on the same page. And over that time, you’ll need to be able to access all of the relevant files and documents concerning your case in order to prepare for your own future court appearances and filings.
If you’re like many people, it can be easy to misplace those documents or misfile them, making it difficult to find what you need when you need it. It helps to have an easy way to access all of the documents that pertain to your case. A legal resource group can offer that in the form of online document storage. This ensures that all of your legal documents are in the same place, organized so that they’re easy to find, and most importantly, safe and secure. This way, you don’t have to worry that coffee will be spilled on them or that they’ll accidentally end up in your child’s backpack instead of a field trip permission slip. You’ll be able to look up the information you need when you need it during your case and even after it’s over if you need to refer back to it later.
Referrals
You can represent yourself in family court, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t need any help from outside professionals. Depending on the case and on your particular situation, you may need the services of a private investigator, a family psychologist, a parenting evaluator, or something else.
There are also situations where you may want to represent yourself, but the case becomes too complicated and you do need a family law attorney. Many family law cases can be handled without an attorney, but it is important to know when you do need a lawyer.
Legal resource groups have professional networks they can refer to in order to help their clients get the resources they need. So, if you need a private investigator or a family evaluator, they can direct you to one that handles the type of case that you have. They can also evaluate your case to help determine if their services are right for you, or if your case is one that would benefit from representation by an actual attorney. In the event that you do need an attorney in your specific case, they can help you find one who is right for the type of case that you’re dealing with.
Family Law Legal Group is a legal resource group that can help you represent yourself in family court. There’s nothing more important to you than your family, so you definitely want to take family law matters seriously and approach them with care. A legal resource group can help you do that.