Don’t Fall Victim To Cheap Online Divorce Document Providers | California Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

If you are searching for online for divorce assistance in California you will undoubtedly find many cheap and low cost services.

I want you to understand the difference between a professional document preparation service and what these online services provide so you can make a decision on which is best suited for you.

I am looking at a Google search I just did for “cheap divorce”.  What you will find is divorce document preparation companies offering services as low as $89.95 for do-it-yourself kits.  Others are selling what is referred to as “automated document assembly” where you fill out an online questionnaire which will auto populate the divorce forms.

So let’s discuss a couple of these options.

Do It Yourself Divorce Kits 

Do it yourself kits are exactly that.  You pay for them to send you the divorce forms.  You will receive a box with a lot of  forms, many that you will never need.  By the way, all the divorce forms are available at the Court House or online completely free.  There is absolutely no reason to pay for your forms, but many do all the time.

Automated Document Assembly

Automated document assembly is where you answer questions online and your answers are automatically populated into the divorce forms.  It seems like a good idea at first glance, until you realize the limitations.

Here are the problems with this type of service.

  1. There is nobody there to tell you if you are providing the correct information.
  2. The divorce forms are usually not updated to the correct version.
  3. They don’t provide you with the local forms for your County.
  4. Nobody reviews your documents.  Once you save and print, you are on your own.
  5. There is no assistance with the “process” of filing and serving your documents.

I actually purchased the licensing rights at one point to sell an automated document assembly.  I had people use it and realized immediately the pitfalls and shortcomings of the software.  These types of systems have not place in a complex process such as divorce.

Full Service Divorce Document Preparation

This is what we provide, a full service divorce document preparation service.  We are licensed and bonded legal document preparers that specialize in divorce in Los Angeles County.  We have worked for the courts and for large law firms and are familiar with the process and how to correctly complete the paperwork.

Here is what you get with our service.

  1. We complete all your documents. No Questionnaires.
  2. We file all your documents with the court.  You won’t go to court.
  3. We inform you step by step of the procedure along the way.  Trust me, you will have lots of questions.
  4. We are available by phone and email to answer all your questions.

I provided this run down of the different services because I was getting too many people calling me for help with their divorce who had already wasted their money on purchasing their forms or the automated document assembly service only to be left with nothing more than paper for their trash.

Should You Use A Divorce Self Help Book | Santa Clarita Divorce

Posted by Tim Blankenship on

There are tons of self help divorce books on the market these days.  But is a book the best way to get through a complicated divorce process even if you are using the self help divorce book to complete your own divorce?

I recently went to the Santa Clarita Library and checked out at least 10 different “How To Divorce” books to see if they would be helpful to someone who was trying to complete their divorce on their own.  Here is what I learned.

First let me say that I know a lot about filing out divorce forms and divorce procedure.  That said, these do-it-yourself divorce books were super confusing.  I had to double check several times to see what they were talking about.

First off, they all start off by talking a little bit about California Law.  They give you a few tidbits about spousal support and child support and other general information.

Then comes the worst part.  The part where they show you how to complete the divorce forms.  This was very funny to me because it the pages looked more like a geometry lesson.

There were lines drawn from words of instruction  on one page to spots on the form they were talking about.  There were lines and arrows all over the page explaining what goes where and a lot of “if this, then that” scenarios.   It was very confusing and i would feel bad for anyone that spent money on these books.

Most of the self help divorce books included a CD (that was missing because I went to the library) but the common theme throughout each of the books was that their was a phone number you could call if you needed help.  They are all written by lawyers and the number you would call was to their law firm or lawyer referral group.

It makes me wonder, due the confusing nature of the books, if they really want to help people going through divorce or just want to make a little money on the sale of the book and hope people call for divorce assistance when they can’t figure it out form using the divorce self help book.  Sort of a lead generation tool if you will.

If you are looking for assistance with your divorce, there are better ways than using a book.  Books are so old fashion anyways.  For instance, how about blogs or videos about divorce.  We have both blogs and videos about divorce and the process and how to fill out the divorce forms.  Don’t you think a video will be much easier to understand?

And if you get tired of watching our how-to-divorce-videos, you can always give us a call, and we can assist you in preparing your divorce for a flat fee.  No attorneys here to charge you by the hour.

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation company that specializes in divorce in Los Angeles County and look forward to helping your complete your divorce.