Granada Hills Divorce Paralegal Service

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Granada Hills Divorce Paralegal Service

We are a full service divorce paralegal firm specializing in divorce and serving the city of Granada Hills. Our full service Granada Hills Divorce paralegal service takes care of your entire divorce from start to finish. Our Granada Hills divorce paralegal service is flat-fee based so you don’t have to worry about hourly fees and high costs.

Watch the short video below to learn more about our Granada Hills Divorce Paralegal Service.

Granada Hills Divorce Paralegal Service

We are a full service divorce paralegal firm specializing in divorce and serving the city of Granada Hills. Our full service Granada Hills Divorce paralegal service takes care of your entire divorce from start to finish. Our Granada Hills divorce paralegal service is flat-fee based so you don’t have to worry about hourly fees and high costs.

Watch the short video below to learn more about our Granada Hills Divorce Paralegal Service.

The Cost Of Doing Your Own California Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

As I am sure you are aware that technically you can do your own California Divorce divorce.  I say technically because many try and many fail.  While it is possible to do it yourself, the percentage of actually completing is very low.

I understand that the decision to attempt to do your own California divorce is most likely a financial decision or you may have been told by someone else that it is easy to do.

In discussing this, I want to talk about what doing your own divorce will cost you.  Not so much in actual dollars, but in time spent in doing so in an effort to shed some light on making the decision to do it yourself or hire us to prepare your divorce case for you.

Folks who decide to attempt to do their own divorce run into several problems.  First of all, you will need to complete your own divorce forms.  I am sure this is your first time so the forms are going to be very foreign to you. You will need to then file these forms with the court, who by the way will not review them for accuracy, they will just take your money and stamp the forms. (it is not their job to review documents)

Just on this first step of filing the forms here are some things you will have to decide.

  • What forms do i need to file to initiate the case?
  • Did I fill them out correctly?
  • Now that there filed, how do I serve them?  Can I serve them?

Okay, so lets assume you filled out the initial court documents, filed them with the court and had them served properly.

Let me ask you a question. How much time did you spend on this?  Did it take you away from your work? Family? TV time?  You get where I am going.

Now you have only just begun the process.  It only gets more difficult as you proceed.  Now you need to complete your financial disclosures.

Here you will need to decide:

  • Which forms do I need?
  • Do they get filed with the Court?
  • Do I need to serve them? Personally served or mail served and by whom?
  • What do I need to disclose?

Lastly, you will need to complete the judgment.  By far the most tricky of parts.  There are multiple forms that comprise the judgment and a certain way to prepare the forms.

The point here is that you are going to spend more time than you like trying to complete your own divorce.  And if you are working, you are going to need help on occasion and probably try to use the court’s self help centers.  Good luck with that. They are on a a first come, first serve basis and usually are only able to help about 30 people per day.

You will end up spending several full days if attempting to use the court’s self help center.

So I again pose the question of what is the cost of doing your own California divorce?

My guess is that it may cost you more financially, but will cost even more in your time. Time you can never get back.

If you have the resources to hire our firm to complete your California divorce, we definitely recommend it.  Spare yourself the nightmare of trying to complete your own divorce.

Trust me, much of our business comes from people who have spent months on their own, without success, only to come to us to fix what they have started and take them to the finish line.

 

Understanding The Steps To Your California Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

I know that going through the divorce process can be a daunting task.  That is why we have made it as simple and painless as possible when using our service for your divorce.

We take pride in helping our clients and potential clients who call for information to understand the divorce process.

In this article I will break down the divorce process so you can understand the different stages you will go through.  Keep in mind, when you hire us for your divorce, we take care of all of this for you.

Let’s get started.

When you decide to get divorced, you will have to “file” for divorce.  This simply means filling out the initial court forms to notify the court that you are asking for a divorce.  These documents need to be completed, then filed with the court where a case number is issued.  Once the case is issued, the documents are ready to be served.  This is how you initiate a divorce.

Once the divorce has been filed and served, the next step is to complete your financial disclosures.  The court’s require that you and your spouse “disclose” your assets and debts to one another.  The idea here is that each of you will become informed of what property and debt’s you have so you can figure out how you are going to divide up your things.

The next phase is where you write down your agreements.  This is often called a Marital Settlement Agreement or Judgment.  The judgment will address everything from separation of your assets and debts, spousal support, child custody and child support and any other issues you want to address.

There are a lot of moving parts to divorce and I explained the process above in a big picture sort of way.

When you are ready to get your divorce started, please give us a call. We handle divorce cases anywhere in California with our flat fee pricing.  We offer free initial phone consultations and can be reached at 661-281-0266.

Should You Sell Your Santa Clarita Home During Divorce?

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Lately I have had several calls with clients who had questions about the issues that come up on whether to sell or keep the home during divorce.

The issues have been that one spouse wants to keep the home while the other one wants to sell it. It is a fairly common issue that will have to be decided before the divorce can be finalized.

The two main things you should look at to help you come to a decision is 1) Can the spouse who wants to keep it, afford it and 2) If you can afford it, how are you going to offset any equity share that will be going to the other spouse.

What we find is that most clients cannot afford to keep the marital home.  The home is either too expensive and requires the income of both parties to make the payment or the home is entirely too big. You don’t need a 5 bedroom home when you are going from 3 kids and a wife to just you.

I think there sometimes is just a tendency to not want to give up those things that were acquired during the marriage.

Regardless of the reasons, you and your spouse will have to look at this and be reasonable in your decisions. It may be hard, but if someone wants to keep the home, you have to make sure you can afford it and everything that goes along with it such as repairs, property tax and insurance.

The best way to keep the house is to refinance the property and pull any cash out if you are dividing this asset.  This is the only way to totally remove the other spouse from the loan and from title.

While is is possible to remove one from title only via a quit claim deed, doing so leaves you on the loan and open to possible negative credit rating if your spouse failed to make the mortgage payment.  In addition, it may make it more difficult to purchase another home if the existing mortgage shows up in your credit history.

We specialize in divorce in California.  If you have any questions about divorce please feel free to give our office a call.

Divorce Process At Chatsworth Divorce Court | Chatsworth Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Divorce Process At Chatsworth Divorce Court | Chatsworth Divorce

The divorce process at the Chatsworth divorce court is pretty similar to that of the rest of Los Angeles County, but lets discuss the step by step process to file your divorce case in Chatsworth divorce Court.



The first thing you need to do to file your divorce at the Chatsworth Divorce court is to prepare your initial divorce forms so  they can be filed. Remember, you must file before you serve.  We continue to see this as a common problem among folks who try to file their own divorce case at the Chatsworth court.

Once you have filed your initial court documents with the Chatsworth Divorce Court, again you need to serve them. When I say you need to serve them, i mean you need to have them served.  This can be anyone other than yourself who is over 18 and not a party to the case.  There is a way to do this by personal service or mail service, but make sure you follow proper procedure for each of the different ways.  I have written previous articles on this and recorded several videos regarding this as well.

After you file and serve your case, you need to prepare your financial disclosures known as the schedule of assets and debts and income and expense declaration.  Then you need to file and serve these documents. Again, have them served.

Once you have completed these steps, you need to complete your judgment documents.  If you have navigated the first 2 steps without problems, this part will most likely give you trouble.

This is because there are so many documents to complete your Chatsworth divorce court judgment forms and even those forms can change depending on whether you have a default, default with agreement or uncontested divorce case in Chatsworth.

Of course, it is recommended you hire our full service divorce paralegal firm in Chatsworth to process your divorce case.

Affordable Chatsworth Divorce Paralegal Service | Chatsworth Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Affordable Chatsworth Divorce Paralegal Service | Chatsworth Divorce

Our affordable Chatsworth divorce paralegal service takes care of your entire Chatsworth divorce from start to finish. If you are looking for a one-stop-shop for your Chatsworth divorce, look no further.



The affordable Chatsworth divorce service we provide is a full service one as well.  This means that we fill out the divorce forms for you, we filed your divorce documents with the court (yep, no court for you) we will take care of the service of the documents as well as prepare all your financial disclosures that are mandatory by the Chatsworth court and complete your final agreements, known as the Judgment or Marital Settlement Agreement.

We have all the forms and access to court software you will need to complete even the most complex Chatsworh divorce cases.  We will assist you with drafting agreements related to your property, child custody and support orders as well as spousal support orders.  We have the court’s dissomaster software as well, so you won’t have to go to court our pay an extra fee to have those number run.

So when you use our affordable Chatsworth divorce service, we will take care of everything.  The only thing we need from you is to provide us with the information we need to complete the forms.  We are here to answer your questions along the way, and believe me you will have plenty of questions.

There is just too much that can go wrong either trying to do your own Chatsworh divorce yourself or hiring someone that just does the forms and leaves the procedural aspects up to you.  The forms are difficult, but where people really struggle is with the process and procedure of moving through the courts archaic process.

Give us a call for a free phone consultation so we can discuss your specific circumstances.

 

Burbank Divorce | How To Divide Your Pension During Divorce In Burbank

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Burbank Divorce | How To Divide Your Pension During Divorce In Burbank

If you are going through a divorce in Burbank and you have a pension that needs to be divided, you are going to need a Qualified Domestic Relations Order, otherwise known as a QDRO or DRO.

We do provide a pension division service and if you used our divorce service for your divorce, we most likely handled your pension division as well.

What kinds of pensions require a Qualified Domestic Relations Order of Domestic Relations Order?

It used to be that just city, state and county type pensions required a QDRO, but we are finding that just about any type of plan considered to be a retirement plan will most likely require a QDRO.  This applies to most 401k’s, 403b’s,

The best thing to do if you are going to get a divorce or are going through a divorce is to simply call your retirement plan up and let then know your are going through a divorce and ask if they will need a QDRO to divide the plan.

If they say “yes”, then ask for a QDRO Package.  They will likely have a package of information to send to you either via mail or email.  We will need this QDRO Package to prepare your paperwork.  If you have not contacted them, we can make that call of you and get the information we need to prepare the Qualified Domestic Relations Order.

The pension division process looks like this:

First we have to join the plan to the divorce case.  This means we have to file a Joinder which will pull your pension or 401k into the divorce case as a third party.  This lets the court and the pension company know that there is a divorce case.  The effect of the joinder is that is will freeze the pension from withdrawal.

Once we have filed the joinder and served it on the plan, we can work on the QDRO language.  Once we have it drafted, we send it to the plan for approval.  When approved, they will send back to us to obtain signatures, then it goes back to court to get filed.  Once the QDRO is filed it is served on the plan and they will divide the pension as indicated.

We are a full service divorce firm that serves the Burbank area as well as anywhere in California. If you need help with your divorce case or need someone to prepare your Qualified Domestic Relations Order, we can usually do that for about 1/3rd the cost of an attorney.

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What Is The Divorce Process In Burbank?

Burbank Divorce Attorney Not Needed In Most Divorce Cases

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Burbank Divorce Attorney Not Needed In Most Divorce Cases

If you live in Burbank and are considering going through a divorce, you may be thinking that you need to hire a divorce attorney.

Well, I am here to tell you that only less than 10% of all divorce cases filed in California actually need or used an attorney for their divorce.

What is the first word you can think of after you hear the word, “divorce?”  I bet it is attorney. And this is why I wanted to write this article to let people know that there are times when you need an attorney and times when you don’t.

When You Don’t Need An Attorney

As of this writing we handle nearly 50 divorce cases every month.  None of these folks needed or used an attorney to complete their divorce. They relied on our Burbank divorce service to complete their entire divorce case from start to finish.

Here is what our clients have in common:

  1. They are somewhat amicable.  You don’t have to be completely amicable and friendly, but you just have to be willing to attempt to go through the divorce process like adults and keep emotion out of it as best as you can.  We get it, you are going through a divorce, but just try your best to get through the divorce process.
  2. They want a good relations for their kids.  If you have children, especially young children, you are going to have to co-parent and will be in each others lives for a long time to come.  It is best that you keep at least that part of your relationship in tact so you both can do what is best for your children.
  3. They don’t want to go to court.  If you come to an agreement outside of court, no court appearance is necessary.  The courts don’t want you in their courtroom, they want you to figure that out on your own or with the assistance of mediation.  Our service handled the court for you so you won’t have to go to court.

When You Need An Attorney

There are just going to be times when you need an attorney.  If you are going to need legal advice or representation in court, then you are going to need an attorney. Unfortunately, there are people out there that will attempt to cheat the system and lie, hide assets, close joint accounts, move away with the kids or do one of 100 different things someone can do to harm the other party.  When these types of things happen, you will most likely need an attorney.

We handle a lot of divorce cases in Burbank. If you think you and your spouse can get through the divorce process with assistance and guidance from us along the way, then we encourage you to call us.  Even if you use our Burbank divorce service and later realize that you do need and attorney, you can always move on and nothing is lost.  Because we follow the exact process and procedures attorneys do, they can simply pick up where we left off.  At least you would have saved a bunch of money up to that point.

Related Burbank Divorce Articles

Where Do I File My Burbank Divorce Case?

What Is The Divorce Process In Burbank?

 

Post Valentines Day Blues | Divorce In Santa Clarita

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

It is that time of year again, where people wait to see what happens at Valentines day to decide on whether or not to file for divorce.  At least that is what the mainstream media wants us to believe.

Being involved with people going through divorce for the last 5 years, I can tell you that we see different reasons for the uptick in divorce flings after Valentines day and wanted to share those insights.

A lot of it has to do with timing and Valentines day just happens to fall within one of the busiest quarters of the year.

There is a stockpile of people who hold off from filing for divorce during the months leading up to the holidays from about Thanksgiving through Christmas.  Those folks that would have normally filed during those times, all come in around beginning in the new year in January.

So we have those that decided in January to file for divorce along all those who had planned on filing back in November and December.

Another reason we see a lot of divorce filings, at least an increase that is, is because people are getting their tax return money in.  We know this for sure because we have had several people call our office for divorce in Santa Clarita and advise us they will be filing for divorce as soon as they get their tax return back.

I would offer one word of caution if you are using Valentines day as your reason for filing for divorce.  Our advice is not to make an emotional decision based upon what happened at Valentines day.

If Valentines day alone is the reason you are filing for divorce, I would say hold off.  If it is a good decision, you can always file for divorce later.

If you are of the majority and Valentines day was not the reason you are filing for divorce and you had made this decision in the past, then it is probably the right thing to do.

There is one rule we follow in our office in Santa Clarita.  If a spouse is in our office, upset, crying and emotional, we will not allow them to file for divorce, at least with us, until they have calmed down and are thinking rationally.

Want to know the interesting thing?  We have never seen those people back in our office which tells us that it would have been a mistake for them to file for divorce when they came into our office.

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation firm that specializes in divorce.

Choose A Licensed Divorce Paralegal That Is Legitimate | Santa Clarita Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

We keep hearing horror stories of people who used a divorce service that was not licensed, not legitimate or lost their money attempting to use one of the online divorce solutions.

i just read an article online about a paralegal who was charged with what is called “UPL” or Unauthorized Practice of Law. These are serious charges that can bring with them criminal penalties including jail and fines.

As a Divorce Paralegal Service in Santa Clarita, CA that provides California divorce services, this is something we have to be careful of on a daily basis.

There are lots of people out there who are not licensed nor bonded to prepare divorce paperwork, and you need to be careful with who you choose to help you with your divorce.

Because of the amount of fraud in this industry, those of us who are licensed and bonded, have to jump through many hoops to keep our license.  In addition, several regulations are put in place and specific rules have to be followed.

It is interesting actually, because those of us who are licensed and providing divorce services are the ones who have take all these extra steps. Those that are operating illegal paralegal services, of course, are not complying with the new regulations that were created for those not following the law.

The point being, is that when deciding on who to use to prepare your divorce in Santa Clarita, whether it be a full service divorce firm like ours or some online document assembly service, make sure that they are compliant with the law.

One of the biggest headaches for our company is talking to people who were previously burned by another divorce paralegal service.  We have to explain the fact that who they used were not legally supposed to be in business.

Here is how you can make sure you are working with a legitimate business.  First, they should be licensed and bonded.  As legal document preparers, we are issued photo identification that clearly indicates that we are allowed to provide services to the public.  In addition, we are required to hold a bond.

Ask to see these documents before you work with any company who is going to provide legal document preparation.

If you would like help with your divorce, we are a full service divorce document preparation firm that specializes in California divorce.