Helena Divorce Lawyers

Going through a divorce is never easy. It is a painstaking process that can quickly become time-consuming, complicated and stressful. There is, however, a way to file that can make the whole process more straightforward and simpler. To avoid unnecessary, drawn-out litigation, our Helena divorce lawyers recommend filing for uncontested divorce whenever possible. 

If a couple is able to come to a mutual agreement on tough marital issues such as property division, finances, child support, alimony, visitation and other issues, they can choose to file for an uncontested divorce. The divorce lawyers in Helena that are part of our team of attorneys can help guide you along the process and help you file for a relatively cheap and quick divorce. Should you and your spouse not be able to come to a mutual agreement, a contested divorce is the alternative.

For couples who cannot come to a mutual agreement, a contested divorce is still an option, although we advise our clients to avoid this option whenever possible due to the challenges and stress associated with it. An uncontested divorce will typically cost more as well and take longer to resolve. Still, should continue to be your only option, our Helena Divorce Lawyers are here to assist you with the process of filing from start to finish.

Divorces in Helena and the surrounding areas of Jefferson County are significantly simpler and cheaper when they are uncontested. Currently, our Helena divorce lawyers are offering discounted flat fees for uncontested divorces in Shelby County as follows.

The uncontested divorce may require additional fees if there are substantial property or tax considerations involved, business interests, paternity issues, retirement issues, or any other complex issues that would require more time of the attorney. There is also a filing fee that the county charges when a divorce is filed. This filing fee varies from county to county. Give our Helena divorce lawyer a call today for more information about the filing fee in your county.

Having reliable counsel through the divorce process is essential to filing it properly. Our Helena divorce lawyers can help you file all the paperwork and documents for an uncontested or contested divorce.  For divorces in Jefferson County, we invite you to reach out to our office. We can discuss all the details with you and initiate the process and other aspects to start your case over the phone.

If you and your spouse want a quick and cheap divorce in Helena, we recommend an uncontested divorce. This option works for couples who have reached agreements on all marital issues and will just need to fill out paperwork and provide certain documents to proceed. To begin, we will have you fill out a simple questionnaire explaining what you have agreed to (along with additional information necessary to prepare all of the required forms and documents) and our Helena divorce attorneys need you to return it to us in order to get the process started.

The process of filing for a no-contest or uncontested divorce is fairly simple. When you call us, then our Helena divorce attorney can answer any questions you may have over the phone and an in-office consultation is usually not necessary.  However, both you and your spouse must have reached an agreement in order to file for an uncontested divorce.

If an agreement cannot be reached and you wish to get divorced, then you will likely have to file a contested divorce.  This is where one party files for divorce and serves the other party with the divorce paperwork.  The other spouse, once served, has a limited amount of time to respond and if they do not, then the filing party may be able to receive their divorce by default.  If the other party does respond, then there will usually be hearings set and a contested divorce will begin.  A contested divorce continues until both parties either reach an agreement as to all contested issues or have a trial and let the judge in their case decide these issues for them.

Our Helena divorce lawyer can help you get a contested divorce, but the fees are much higher. We will require a retainer upfront of thousands of dollars or more in most cases, depending on your circumstances. The divorce attorney then bills out of that retainer at an hourly rate until he or she has worked enough so that the retainer is empty. At that point you have to refill the retainer in order for the attorney to keep working on the case. Call us today and speak with our Helena divorce attorney who can conduct a quick phone consultation and quote you a retainer fee for your particular case.

It is always cheaper and simpler to reach an agreement beforehand and file an uncontested divorce, but if that is not possible then call our Helena divorce lawyers to discuss the contested divorce process in your county.

Even in a quick and easy uncontested divorce, each county can have different document requirements, so it is important to have a local divorce lawyer file your cheap divorce in Helena, Alabama.  If you reside in Helena, then your divorce will most likely be filed in Jefferson County Domestic Relations Court which has specific divorce requirements that other counties may not have.  

For example, when filing a cheap divorce in Jefferson County there are certain documents that must have language included in them that are unique to that county.  If you are filing a cheap divorce in Jefferson County, then there are very specific requirements concerning when your divorce documents should be signed and filed.  If these requirements are not met, and the proper motions and other pleadings are not filed in the proper way, then they are likely to dismiss your case and you will have to file it all over again.

If you are using an online divorce document preparation program, then they will usually not have such county-specific language in them and it can cause your divorce to be dismissed by the judge assigned to your case.  Our Helena divorce lawyers are familiar with all of these local rules and will work to ensure that all documents are filed correctly and in compliance with the local rules.  This is why an actual Helena uncontested divorce attorney is necessary and having a national online document preparation company prepare your divorce documents may not be the best decision.

While we encourage uncontested divorces whenever possible since it’s a much simpler process, our divorce attorneys also handle contested divorces in Helena. This is the appropriate filing when a mutual agreement is not reached beforehand and you have your spouse served with the Complaint. Typically, following the serving, the spouse finds an attorney to represent them and files a response. Hearings are then set and your disagreements are ultimately decided by a judge.

At The Harris Firm, our divorce lawyers will help you file a contested divorce properly. Unlike the uncontested route, the contested divorce attorney fees are significantly higher. As most family law firms do, our divorce attorneys in Helena require a retainer for contested divorce services. The lawyer then bills hourly, and the amount billed each month, of course, depends on the amount of work performed.

Contested divorce retainers are usually thousands of dollars, but of course this depends on how complex the issues involved are and how much they are contested. When there are minor children involved, retainers are generally more than without children. However, there are other factors that affect your retainer quote as well. Feel free to reach out to our office today and we can go over your case and inform you of the retainer required to begin working on your case.  If you need a divorce lawyer in Hoover, or the surrounding areas of Helena, Bessemer, Pinson, Irondale, Trussville, Gardendale, Vestavia Hills, Homewood, or Fairfield, then you will likely be filing in the Jefferson County Courts.

Our local Helena divorce attorney regularly files divorces in Jefferson and Shelby County. He is a member of the local Birmingham Bar Association and the Central Alabama Better Business Bureau.  If you call our Helena divorce lawyer today, then we can answer any questions you may have, including helping to determine what courthouse to file your divorce in.