If there is a painful lesson that couples can go through is taking a divorce. This is something that is never expected in life and leaves a lot of hurt and pains to the couples and their children. In most cases, couples have tried their best to heal their broken marriages, but when it reaches the climax, they can never hold on again besides calling off the marriage. The sacrifice of healing the union takes a lot of time, money, and one’s mind is always under pressure over the next course of action. Therefore if the couples decide to divorce, they should not suffer more than their first experience. Consequently, they need to look for a way out and have a cheap divorce that will not cost them so much. After all, there is life after the divorce, and one should start planning on how the new life of singlehood will be managed. If couples want to divorce, they have to go through the court to get a decree and be officially separated. One of the requirements is that you must have lived together as husband and wife for one year and more. In this regard, when the marriage is uncontested, you do not have to go through the lawyer since there are easy and cheap methods to file a divorce. These include:
- Online Divorce
- Do it yourself divorce.
Below is a detailed explanation of how you can apply for a cheap and quick divorce.
Online Divorce
There are online companies that offer services and guidance on how one can go through a divorce in a cheap and quick way. Before settling for an online divorce site, ensure that you do thorough research and decide on the one whose reviews outweigh the rest. This shows that several people have used the website and they have been happy with the services. Below is the procedure of making a divorce application online. Once you settle for the site of your choice, there are 4 easy steps that you need to follow as you start the process.
I. Check if you qualify
When you log in to the divorce online site, there is a questionnaire you are expected to fill. They are questions related to your date of birth residence, to determine if you can file for divorce in the state you are in.
II. Signing up
When you qualify to use the divorce online, you are supposed to sign up by paying the required application fees, and this will aid in getting the divorce forms and be able to start answering questions which will form the documentation for the court filing. The beauty of filling documents online is that you can do it at the comfort of your home, If you have agreed with your spouse to move on with the marriage separation process, then this will even be better because you will sit down together, discuss on any issues you need to agree upon and fill the forms with an open mind. This will not only form a basis for accountability on the process, but it makes the entire process a quick one what has no faults within a short period.
III. Review of the forms
Once you have completed filling the forms, you get an option to review the entire document to ensure that whatever you have out down is true to your knowledge and that of your spouse. When you confirm that all is well, then you submit back to the online site that you are dealing with. They will review the divorce papers and process them for final submission to the courts.
IV. Filing for Divorce.
This is the last step where the documents are printed and given to you for final submission. This can take up to 24 hours to have the documents ready. Once they have been delivered to you, it is your obligation to file the documents pending the court decree. If the courts authenticate the validity of the documents, it gives a date when the decree will be made. The entire process can take roughly 2-3 months to complete the process. Once a decree is made, then you are free to separate and initiate the divorce settlement process officially. This would include asset sharing, child custody, and also settling down for the new life.
Do-it-yourself divorce
Do-it-yourself divorce is a type of separation where you are allowed to carry out all the procedures by yourself without the involvement of a lawyer. Usually, the state courts have the forms that you need to fill to file for the breaking of the marriage. All you got to do is to c=visit the state courts and explain to them about your intentions. They will provide you with the forms, and you get the chance to fill them on your own and submit back to the court clerks. One does not need an attorney to do this, making it an inexpensive way of separation. However, to qualify for this method of marriage dissolution, the process is uncontested, and both of you agree on moving forward with the process. Typically, you agree on how the assets will be shared in advance, who will be in charge of the children custody, and this makes the entire process easy. To have a successful Do-it-yourself divorce, there are various tips that you need to put into consideration, and these are;
1. Involve the court clerk in the process
Usually, county offices have court clerks who support people on document filing. In as much as they cannot provide legal advice, they will guide you on how to do the documentation to avoid back and forth of the submission to the courts.
2. Mediation
Before making a final decision to end the marriage, consider mediation. For instance look for a way in which both of you can resolve and end the disputes, a counselor or a therapist can support in this procedure such that you can agree on how to end the marriage with peace.
3. Consult a financial advisor because of the tax implications
Since there may be long-term implications that can impact on you during the DIY divorce, consider hiring a tax advisor who will give way forward to ensure that the taxes will not be imposed on you heavily which would be an added cost. At the very least, you should find a good tax calculator if you’re not going to use a professional.
4. Seek the support of paralegals
These are experts who support in document preparation, and they are useful for uncontested divorce processes. Otherwise, an Attorney will be required to step in if the divorce is contested. They do not give any individualized legal advice because their work is to guide on neutral ground on how the documents will be prepared in a way that they are accepted in the courts.
5. Do not use a DIY process if there is anger in your heart.
The reason you should avoid is that you may end up being bitter as you process the papers, have anger to your children and your spouse, and therefore it amounts to contested divorce which may not be the reality. Compose yourself, listen to and another as couples and agree on the way forward towards your separation. By doing this, you will be able to make sound decisions regarding issues like transferring of joint assets with the agreement, making a proper plan for the child’s custody and they will not be affected when you start living separately.
6. Seek advice from the lawyers
You may not be sure of the DIY process. To get a clear picture, get a qualified divorce attorney who could guide you on the best way to end your marriage. With the information provided, you will be in a position to know what the best option is whether to pay a lawyer to facilitate the entire processor to hire one to aid in decision making when you are stuck with issues.
Conclusion
Getting a heap and an affordable divorce can be a relief to the pain that one has gone through the marriage that is soon to end. It allows one to have an opportunity to understand at what point you should either use online divorce, follow the do-it-yourself process, or use a lawyer to represent you in a divorce court. In any case, using these processes, you end up having a cheap and quick divorce than having to go through the Attorney and pay hefty fines for the representation. When we take the instance of the online divorce, there are those whose reputation is uncompromised, and the forms processed through them are 100% approved in a court of law. Therefore consider using these methods if you intend to have a cheap and quick divorce.