Family law cases always raise tough questions. If overcoming the emotions and resolving the issues raised by divorce, adoption, and child custody and parenting time were easy, the very field of family law would not even exist. 

Answering difficult questions correctly and definitively requires possessing deep knowledge and accumulating broad experience. Simply looking up a few statutes and trusting one’s gut will not suffice for, for instance, ensuring an abused spouse secures an enforceable protective order, that a loving father who never married his daughter’s mother remains involved in raising the child, or that a spouse wins release from the obligation to pay spousal support once the person receiving alimony remarries or moves in with a lover. 

The first reason to pay for legal consultation from an experienced Ohio family law attorney, then, is that hiring your own attorney gives you access to information and insights that will benefit you. Spending a career in family law is the only way to fully understand how judges interpret laws, which strategies have the highest likelihood of succeeding, and what plaintiffs and defendants in family law cases are required to do. 

The second reason to hire your own family law attorney is that the other people involved in your case will retain their own lawyers. Only your legal adviser and representative will commit to protecting your rights and interests. The attorney on the other side is working to see that you receive less than what you consider a “win.” That may sound cruel and unfair, but it is actually the other attorney’s job; he or she is bound by professional codes of conduct to do their best for every client. You must do what you can to ensure you receive the same services. 

This points to the third reason to line up paid legal consultation when entering or going through a family law dispute: You need a lawyer who acts only in your best interest. No one but your attorney will listen to your version of events without prejudgment, explore every way to achieve your preferred outcome, and speak for you during negotiations, arbitrations, or court hearings. Your lawyer will also work to protect your privacy, property, physical safety, and personal dignity. 

A final reason to pay for legal consultation relates to the services your family law attorney provides as your case progresses. Plaintiffs and defendants often find themselves wondering if they can fully trust, and confidently act upon, what their own lawyer tells them. Seeking a second opinion is one of your principle rights as a party to legal action. Fully investigating and reaching a conclusion on a proposed divorce settlement or child custody and support arrangement can take quite a bit of time. Paying a neutral legal consultant to take the time needed to offer an informed and unbiased opinion can produce untold benefits over a lifetime.

You can request a consultation with an Edward F. Whipps & Associates family law attorney by calling (614) 461-6006 or by completing this online contact form. We have offices in Columbus and Dublin, Ohio.