Can my divorce be amicable?
Yes, it can, even though sometimes it is not an easy task. We called it an “Uncontested Divorce”. In order for your divorce to be uncontested, you and your spouse must agree to all the terms, including children issues, division of assets and liabilities, alimony and child support.
Uncontested divorces are more frequent in cases where there are no children born of the marriage, when the marriage is of short duration and neither spouse needs financial support from the other. In these cases, the family lawyer usually prepares the paperwork on behalf of one of the spouses and sends the proposed agreement to the other.
In Florida, even though both spouses want to get divorced and have agreed to all the terms, the family attorney can only represent one of the spouses. It is recommended that the other spouse retain his or her own divorce attorney, or at least have a lawyer of his or her choice review it. When someone decides not to retain a lawyer, that person is a “self-represented litigant”, which happens very often in uncontested dissolutions of marriage.
The beauty of uncontested divorce is that the family relations are better preserved, it is faster and less expensive. But you do not want to rush into signing the uncontested divorce papers if that is not in your best interest, or if you are waiving rights.
If you are thinking about uncontested, amicable divorce, please call me for a free initial consultation, where you will be able to evaluate, without obligation, if this is the best option for you and your loved ones.
Photo credit: Paul Aloe
