December A Busy Month For Divorces In Santa Clarita

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

December A Busy Month For Divorces In Santa Clarita

I hate to admit it, but December is always a very busy month for divorces not only in Santa Clarita, but all of Los Angeles County.

The interesting thing is that while the phones are literally ringing off the hook, most people are just calling to get information and holding off until after the new year.

This makes sense to me.  Why make more difficult what is probably already a difficult time in your life by filing for divorce during the holidays.  Let’s get past Christmas and New Years and then it can be back to business as far as getting through the divorce process.

So while the phones continue to ring, we are simply advising our soon to be clients that they should expect the courts to be busy come January and February as all these folks who are filing for divorce then will certainly have an impact on the court services.

One thing you might want to consider is to get your initial divorce documents prepared and filed in December and then just hold onto them until you are ready to serve your spouse in January.  Nobody will no you filed for divorce but you.  Oh, and me!

By doing this you will have already completed the initial divorce paperwork and be ready to move forward come January and be that much ahead of the game.

Don’t forget that the divorce does not actually start until you spouse is served, so if you were concerned about timing, there is nothing to worry about.

So whether you just need the information about our services or are ready to get started, please feel free to give us a call.  We would be happy to discuss your options in filing for divorce and about your specific circumstances.

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Santa Clarita Divorce Paralegal Offices In Santa Clarita

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Santa Clarita Divorce Paralegal Offices In Santa Clarita

I have been really feeling the pressure to break from my current virtual / online divorce service format.  To date, we have been very successful in avoiding the traditional mold of a brick and mortar business model.

But lately it seems that more and more people feel like there is something wrong with your business if you don’t have an office location where they can physically drive to.  And this is despite the fact that I am a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service and give one heck of an explanation of how and why our online divorce service works in Santa Clarita.

So I have broken down and started looking at retail and industrial offices in Santa Clarita.  Now I remember why I did not want to get an office.  It is crazy expensive, even for a 5×5 cubicle in a not so good area of town.

So do I break my online divorce service format?  I guess it boils down to how many clients I may be losing by their subconscious telling them to stay away from a business that does not have a physical business address.

I did some research and Google’d “Public Perception Of Virtual Business” and found some interesting thoughts.  Want to know what the number one disadvantage of a virtual business model was?  The public perception was that your organization will not be around for long if they utilize a virtual business model.

I thought that was so interesting.  I see so many Santa Clarita restaurants and business’s closing shop and the perception is that virtual business’s will not be around long.  Did anyone care to mention that it was probably the inability to pay the rent that put them out of business in the first place?

In any case, I am just about to become a brick and mortar business so the public does not think we are on the way out or some sham business.

What’s your take on this subject?

 

Licensed Divorce Document Service In Santa Clarita

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Licensed Divorce Document Service In Santa Clarita

If you have been reading our blog posts, you know that we are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service.  We emphasize the fact that we are licensed because of the large amount of unlicensed paralegal services operating illegally in Santa Clarita.

We know for a fact that we are the only licensed divorce document preparation service in Santa Clarita.  But we see several folks calling themselves paralegals and who are not a licensed document preparation service.

Much has been said about these unlicensed paralegal services discussing their illegal operation.  Aside from them operating outside the law, they cast a negative shadow on the legal document service profession.

There is a reason that the County of Los Angeles requires you do become licensed.  They want to make sure you have the required skills, education and training to provide a legal document preparation service.  These unlicensed paralegal services are causing many problems for people who decide to use them.

For instance, I get at least one call per week from someone who hired an unlicensed paralegal to prepare their divorce paperwork.  They chose to work with the lowest bidder and learned the hard way that you get what you pay for.  Now they have to pay me to fix what the unlicensed paralegal did, or should I say didn’t do.

It is similar to when you hire a licensed contractor to do some work around your house.  You know you are going to pay more for excellent service and for them to do a good job.  They have a little more overhead because they had to pay for licenses, get educated, etc.  You won’t get that same service from the guys that hang out outside the home depot’s, but it will be cheaper.  You just can’t count on the fact that they will do it right.

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specialized in the divorce process.  Please give us a call to learn more about our fixed fee divorce service.

We Can Finish Your Santa Clarita Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

We Can Finish Your Santa Clarita Divorce

Well, the calls keep coming in with folks who need help finalizing their divorce.  Trying to do your own divorce is a daunting task with all there is to know and learn about the divorce process.

But as I have mentioned in previous articles, the courts have one little dirty secret.  Want to know what it is?

The court is not reviewing any of your forms you complete and file with the court.  Everything you have done up to this point has not been reviewed by the court.

The first time anyone will look over your divorce documents is when you go to file your final judgment paperwork. Only then does someone go over your forms, and with a fine tooth comb.

That said, folks are left with a false sense of security in thinking they have done everything right along the way.  As hard as you have worked to get the forms right, you come to learn that you did it all wrong and have to start over, re-file forms or worse, not even know what you did wrong.

I had another call today from someone who just got tired of going to the court to try to figure it out.  They made me laugh, when they said they were tired of having to go wait in long lines to get into court, go through the metal detectors and then wait in line again at the self help center.  Nobody said it would be fun.

You are not alone if you share these frustrations in trying to get through your divorce.  Especially after you have submitted your judgment, thought everything was just fine, then 3 months later have your divorce judgment rejected.

Well, there is help.  We can do a complete review of your divorce paperwork if you have had it rejected.  We can even do the review before you submit it to make sure that everything is done right.

We will go through every form you have filed, check to make sure everything is filled out correctly, make any necessary changes and then complete the final judgment paperwork.

For more information about our judgment review process, please give us a call.

Disclosure During Uncontested Divorce | Santa Clarita

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Disclosure During Uncontested Divorce | Santa Clarita

When you go through a divorce, one of the biggest elements is the disclosure process.  This means disclosure of your income and expenses as well as a detailed schedule of assets and debts.

I am asked why we have to complete the disclosure process when it is an uncontested divorce.  The easy answer is because the courts say we have to.  But in reality the disclosure procedure is very important, even in an uncontested divorce.

Divorce is all about disclosure if you think out it.  It boils down to dividing up what you have collectively.  What you had before marriage and after separation is yours (Separate Property) and what you accumulated during marriage (Community Property) is supposed to be divided equally.

This is why the courts want you to complete all the disclosure paperwork.  The only way the court can know if the property and debt is being evenly divided is if it is disclosed.  But in an uncontested divorce the court will generally not get involved, so the disclosure process is meant to inform the parties of what is on the table to divide.

The best way to do your disclosures during an uncontested divorce is for one of the spouses to do theirs first.  In most cases, the disclosures will be almost identical, except for perhaps a few accounts that the other spouse opened that you are not aware of, etc.

So what we do in our office is work with one spouse to complete their disclosures.  We get everything copied, signed and served on the other spouse.  Then we make a duplicate set, but change out the party information on the paperwork and ask the other spouse to add anything that is not on the disclosures.

Completing the disclosures this way during an uncontested divorce makes it a much more simpler process.  Be careful!  Nobody likes doing the disclosures because they are a pain in the butt.  Don’t get hung up on it, just get it done.

If you need assistance completing your financial disclosures during divorce please give us a call.  We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  We are headquartered in Santa Clarita, CA and serve all of Los Angeles County.

Is Your Divorce In The San Fernando Valley?

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Is Your Divorce In The San Fernando Valley?

If you have been reading our blogs, you know that we have multiple sites that are dedicated to certain geographic locations.  And we like to talk about our new sites when we get them up and running.

We have just created a new divorce paralegal site with great information about the divorce process and our services in the San Fernando Valley.  You can also visit our new site at www.paralegaldivorcesanfernandovalley.com

Yes, we know it is a long name, but it does speak for itself.  We are hoping that the search engines will pick it up faster for this reason so we can get the word out about our affordable divorce service in the San Fernando Valley.

You may have come across our other site which you can find at www.divorce818.com.  This site also talks about divorce paralegal information in the San Fernando Valley, but it also has information about all the cities that fall within the 818 area code.  If we do any type of paid advertising it will probably be with the divorce818 site due to its length.

We will attempt to get as much information about our paralegal divorce San Fernando Valley blog out on the net so that folks have access to our self help videos that can show you how to complete the divorce process and navigate the court system on your own if you wanted to.

Short of that, we simply wanted to have a place folks can turn to for trusted information about the divorce process in the San Fernando Valley.

If you are going through a divorce in the San Fernando Valley, you should know that we are the only divorce paralegal service that specializes in divorce.  We also have a 100% online divorce service.

For more information about our San Fernando Divorce paralegal service, please give us a call or visit www.paralegaldivorcesanfernandovalley.com

Volunteering With The Los Angeles Superior Divorce Court

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Volunteering With The Los Angeles Superior Divorce Court

One of my claim to fame is that I continue to volunteer at the Los Angeles Superior Court in the San Fernando Court House.  I have done this for going on two years now.

I do this because I feel it is important to keep up to date on all of what is happening with the divorce courts.  I work at the San Fernando Court house simply because it is closest to me, but I have been to most of the Los Angeles Superior Courts.

Currently, I help the family law department process their divorce judgments.  This includes reviewing divorce judgments submitted by those representing themselves and also those filed by attorneys.

I think it is an important civic duty to volunteer, but it also serves another purpose which is to continue to learn and better understand the divorce process.

I believe I am the only one in my field that actually has stepped foot into a court house.  Besides processing divorce judgements, I am able to have access to the judicial assistants and court staff to learn and ask questions.  I also assist the family law clerks office at the filing window when they are busy.

I am going to start reporting on the things I see and hear in the courts.  It will be interesting to share my experiences with those who are representing themselves on my blogs and podcasts.   The more information I can get out about the divorce process, the better prepared my clients, readers and listeners will be.

So stay tuned for regular updates about changes, updates and court procedures.  I will make sure to get the word out so that those going through divorce and representing themselves has access to up to date information about the divorce process.

As always, if you are looking for a professional, affordable divorce solution in Los Angeles County, make sure to give us a call.

Santa Clarita Divorce Blog A Wealth Of Information

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Santa Clarita Divorce Blog A Wealth Of Information

As the only Santa Clarita divorce blog providing self help divorce information, our site is really starting to become the go to source for information about divorce for the self represented client.

Our goal has been to put out so much content about divorce in Santa Clarita that we literally appear on every search you could think of as it pertains to divorce.  And it is starting to work.

It takes time to build a credible blog.  This is true both in the eyes of the All Mighty Google and our potential clients and local community.

Slowly but surely we are gaining traction and getting the word out about our affordable divorce service which is headquartered in Santa Clarita and serving all of Los Angeles County through our online divorce solution.

We are using multiple ways of gaining attention on the web.  We have our YouTube channel which we produce about a video per day, letting folks know about our business and even producing “how to” videos on completing the divorce paperwork.

We have a daily Divorce Podcast which provides information about divorce and our company.  All of this information is tied back into our Santa Clarita divorce blog into a single source where it can all be found.

We are finding that many people are reading the content on our divorce blog, watching the divorce videos and listening to the podcast. This is a great way to educate yourself about the divorce process which will ultimately assist you when it comes time to filing for divorce.

We hope you enjoy all the divorce information we are putting out on the web.  You are always welcome to call us for more information about our divorce services and how we can help you get through your divorce.  Until next time, happy reading.

Why It Is Important To Educate Yourself About Divorce | Santa Clarita

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Why It Is Important To Educate Yourself About Divorce | Santa Clarita

When considering getting divorced, it is important that you spend time to understand the process and steps to getting divorced. It is for these reasons that we produce so many videos and write so many articles about divorce.

We want the consumer to be educated about the divorce process.

A recent new client called and had done just that.  When I received the call, I asked them how much they new about our company and the services we could provide.

His answer was perfect.  He said that he and his wife had watched a lot of the videos we had made and read many of the articles that we have written about divorce and the process.

He said he was able to make the decision to use our services before he called because of the amount of information we had produced.  The call to our office was mostly follow up questions and specifics as to their situation.

This is a perfect example of what someone should do before calling us.  I am not suggesting you don’t call us.  Please do.  But please also read some of our blog content and watch a few of our videos.  T

They are very easy to understand and are very short.  It will make for a better conversation when you call.  This is especially true if you don’t know what to ask.

After watching some of the videos and reading our blog content, you probably will have some questions related to your specific set of circumstances.

We continually make new videos and written content about divorce on a daily basis.  Sometimes as many as five articles are written daily and on average at least on video per day.

So spend some time to get to know a little about us and understand the divorce process.  Then, when your ready, give us a call so we can discuss the specifics to your situation.

We are a licensed and bonded Legal Document Preparation firm that specializes in divorce.  We have years of experience helping families through the divorce process.  We provide a 100% online affordable divorce solution. Please call us for more information.

Questions About FL-141 During Divorce | Santa Clarita

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

Questions About FL-141 During Divorce | Santa Clarita

I had someone ask a great question today about how to complete the FL-141.  This is the form you use to instruct the court that you have served either your preliminary declaration of disclosure or the final declaration of disclosure.

The FL-141 is called the Declaration Regarding Service of Declaration of Disclosure and Income and Expense Declaration.

When you file this form with the court, you are telling them that you served your income and expense declaration and your schedule of assets and debts.

The question specifically asked this.  When you file your final declaration of disclosure, do you mark both the preliminary and final box and put both the dates of when you served the preliminary and final on one form?

Here goes the answer.  This is a multi-use form.  It can be used by the Petitioner or Respondent and can be used to tell the court you are filing the Preliminary Declaration of Disclosure or Final Declaration of Disclosure.

You would only do one or the other on the form.  So if you are filing your preliminary declaration of disclosure, you would only mark box #2 which addresses that.

When you later go to file your Final Declaration of Disclosure, you would only mark box #4 which addresses that.

When filing your Final Declaration of Disclosure, you would not mark both box #2 and #4 on the same form at once.

I appreciate getting questions from folks representing themselves.  Especially when it comes to form completion questions.   We understand that some folks want to go through the divorce without assistance.

We are here to help whether you hire us to professionally prepare your divorce or you are just looking for assistance or have a question about how to complete a form.

We are headquartered in Santa Clarita, CA and specialize in the divorce process providing affordable divorce document preparation.  Our service is 100% online which means we can serve you anywhere in Los Angeles County.