Court | Seattle Divorce Services

What Is A Commissioner or Judge Pro Tem?

First a brief explanation - Judges are elected positions, while Court Commissioners are hired by the Judges to taken on some limited judicial functions (like hearing Family Law Motions) to free the Judges up for trial work. A Judge or Court Commissioner Pro-Tempore is more commonly referred to as a...

Compassionate Litigation

Can compassionate litigation be possible? While I talk a great deal about Collaborative Divorce because it is my preferred dispute resolution method, our office also does a large amount of divorce litigation (court based). However, all divorce litigation is not the same. I like to think of collab...

A Tale Of Two Divorces

A Litigation Story: Lori and Joe had been fighting off and on for the last year, too often in front of their children, Max (8) and Maggie (10). Finally, Lori told Joe that she wanted a divorce. Over the next couple of weeks, both met with and hired divorce lawyers. When they met with their respe...

Managing Conflict In Divorce Litigation

While we believe in exploring opportunities for alternative dispute resolution in our cases, often we do need to litigate (proceed with court process) for one reason or another. Litigation IS an adversarial process. Still, even in litigation we prefer to reduce conflict rather than escalate it....

How do tI get my Spouse to sign the divorce papers? - Seattle Divorce Services

How Can I Get Someone To Sign Divorce Papers?

This question can refer to two very different sets of divorce papers. One is the initial papers filing for divorce, and one is the final order completing the divorce; and of course, I am only discussing this from the perspective of divorce in Washington State. The law in other states or countries m...

Is litigation necessary in divorce? - Seattle Divorce Services

When Is Litigation Needed In Divorce?

Litigation is the process of submitting issues to the court for decision. While we believe that our clients are better off when we can keep conflict to a minimum and help our clients reach agreements out of court, sometimes litigation is needed. Litigation is generally needed if one side is unwi...

Can I Have My Spouse Pay For Both Divorce Attorneys?

If your spouse agrees to pay for both divorce attorneys, certainly it is possible. Some attorneys may be reluctant to accept payment from the other spouse, citing conflict of interest concerns, but I would expect most would be okay with it. Even if the attorney does not want to take direct paymen...

Questions For Your Attorney About Divorce

Last week I discussed questions to help you decide which attorney to hire. This week, I wanted to suggest some questions to ask to help you be better informed about the divorce process itself and to help you make decisions about the divorce....

Can You Stop A Divorce After Filing?

At least here in Washington, and I imagine in any state, you can stop a divorce action before the divorce has been finalized if both parties agree to the dismissal. A dismissal ends the case so that the divorce does not move forward. Also, if the other party has responded to the Petition for Diss...

Who Pays for the Divorce?

In Washington State, each party is responsible for hiring and paying their own attorney, including any initial deposits as well as any subsequent bills. So this means that each spouse pays for the divorce based on their personal choice of attorney. However, the court does have the authority to alloc...

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