What is the Cost of a Divorce in Tennessee?

The cost of divorce generally depends on a few factors – the lawyer’s hourly rate, the issues that need to be resolved, the finances of the spouses, how contentious or amicable the disputes are, and the alternatives to divorce. A more in-depth analysis of these issues follows. At the Law Offices of Adrian H. Altshuler & Associates, we work with clients so that the payments are reasonable and are spread out over time. We take pride in using our 30 years of experience to protect your financial future and expedite the divorce process.

The lawyer’s hourly rate

At the Law Offices of Adrian H. Altshuler & Associates, we let you know at the initial conference how much we charge. Our law office will prepare a written agreement that explains how much we charge for our services. Normally, clients pay a retainer (an advance of a reasonable amount of the likely fee). We then bill the client if and when the retainer is used.

The issues that we need to resolve

The amount of time we need to spend on your case depends on the following issues:

• Whether the divorce is contested. Spouses can agree to a no-fault divorce, or one party can seek grounds to divorce.
• If the spouses have minor children. We need to ensure that there is a child custody order that establishes which parent(s) have physical and legal custody of your children and the terms of the parenting plan that sets forth the specific terms of each parent’s responsibilities. Our Franklin divorce lawyer also needs to ensure that there is a child support order to ensure your child has food, clothing, shelter, and other essential needs.
• The income and assets of the spouses. We work to fully identify the property and income each spouse has and to divide the property fairly and in a way that protects your children, if applicable.
• Whether you or your spouse is seeking alimony. We represent spouses who need or have to pay various types of alimony.
• Other issues. We may also need to resolve other family issues such as domestic violence, the rights of grandparents, and paternity,

The finances of the spouse

Tennessee does have laws that help ensure the divorce contest is fair – that a spouse does not use their wealth or stronger financial position to force a spouse whose finances are weaker to accept a bad settlement.

For example, Tenn. Code Section 36-5-121 provides that a spouse may have to pay the other spouse when there are child custody, child support, and spousal alimony contests. Tennessee law also states that a spouse whose finances are less strong may receive alimony “in lieu of or in addition to any other alimony award, in order to provide support, including attorney fees, where appropriate.”

How contentious is the divorce?

The resolution of your divorce and all of the contested issues depends on how much both spouses want to reach a resolution and how much each spouse wants to fight every aspect of the divorce. Most spouses do want to move on with their lives. Most spouses want to ensure they and their children have as much money as possible – and not the lawyers. Still, there are some spouses who fight because they can’t admit the marriage is over, they think they can pressure the other spouse, or for other reasons.

At the Law Offices of Adrian H. Altshuler & Associates, we can explain the alternatives to a fully contested divorce that can help save both spouses time and money. If your spouse will only respond to a judge’s decision, we are always ready to represent spouses in court.

Alternatives to divorce litigation that can save attorney fees and costs

We’re not going to sugarcoat it. Litigation can be expensive. Litigation requires a lot of preparation time – especially if your spouse is hiding assets, misrepresenting the income they make, or is just being obnoxious. Trials can take hours or even days depending on whether the spouses have high assets, the judge’s schedule, and other factors.

Fortunately, most divorces settle before a judge hears your case. Our family law understands and uses alternatives to litigation to your advantage. The alternatives to divorce litigation include the following:

• Negotiation between the lawyers. If the spouses have a fairly good idea of asset division, childcustody,, child support, the terms of a parenting plan, and alimony, then we can negotiate an overall agreement with your spouse’s lawyer. In some cases, where there are no children and minimal assets, a quick resolution is possible.
• Here, an experienced family law attorney or another family law official is chosen to try to forge a settlement between the spouses. The mediator’s decision is impartial. The mediator does not rule on your disputes.

The advantages of using a mediator include:

• Lower legal fees because the issues aren’t being contested in court.
• Control over when the mediation sessions take place.
• Less stress.
• The ability for the parties to decide on the resolutions rather than have a judge decide the disputes.

Generally, in Tennessee, mediation of divorce disputes is mandatory, although the family law judge can make exceptions.

• Collaborative divorce. Spouses can also use the collaborative divorce process to resolve disputes. This process has many of the advantages of mediation. The key differences are that the spouses work with a collaborative divorce specialist instead of a mediator – and with various experts such as child psychologists and appraisers – to help the spouses and lawyers forge an agreement.

Some divorces resolve quickly. Most divorces take some time to resolve. At the Law Offices of Adrian H. Altshuler & Associates, we work to obtain divorce orders that protect you and your children – now and in the future. Our Franklin divorce attorneys use our experience to forge settlements. When necessary, we are ready to try your case in court. We will work with you to protect your future while keeping your legal costs reasonable. Contact us today to speak to an attorney.