
	Lawyers, checked out by Lawyers, for Clients, just like they would for family.


	How It Works:

You post
your case.

Notification
sent
to lawyers
in your area.

Lawyers'
contact
information
sent to you.

You choose
the lawyer
who is
right for you.

Begin HERE with location where the lawyer is needed:

City:

State:

CheckedOutFamilyLawyers.com is the best way to find separation lawyers and separation attorneys, along with state separation laws and legal information.

To find a checked out separation lawyer, enter your city and state, above, and click "Find My Lawyer."

Want more information? See How It Works

Separation

Separation has different legal meanings in different states. States vary significantly in their approaches to separation.

Separation can simply refer to an arrangement where a married couple no longer resides in the same dwelling. Sometimes spouses do this to simply give themselves time to decide if they ultimately want to divorce (this is often what is meant by the term “trial separation”).

An informal separation can become a “legal separation” in many states through a declaration by a court. This typically would involve a court ruling on such issues as the division of property, alimony, child support, and child custody. Sometimes couples seek a legal separation, instead of a divorce, often because couples have religious objections to divorce.

In many states, an informal separation can have legal effect if spouses enter into a written agreement (often called a “Marital Settlement Agreement” or a “Separation Agreement”). This also would typically address issues like division of property, alimony, child support, and child custody.

In some states, separation is also a requirement a divorce, particularly for a no fault divorce. Spouses are often required to be separated for a certain minimum period of time before a spouse files for divorce under grounds that requires separation. Additionally, there are often legal requirements regarding the nature of the separation itself if spouses wish to use it to qualify for a divorce. Again, states vary as to these requirements.

Since issues related to separation are determined by reference to state law, and because state laws on separation vary, it is critically important to find the right separation lawyer.

Finding your Separation lawyer

CheckedOutFamilyLawyers.com provides the best way to find separation lawyers and separation attorneys, along with separation laws and information.

To find the right separation lawyer for you, it's critical to use a method that makes sense. Two common methods make little sense:

Advertisements & Attorney Listing Services …

Is the separation lawyer with the biggest ad in the phone book the best separation lawyer for you? Not likely. It's easy to see why you might not find the attorney who's right for you through an advertisement.

How about services that merely list attorneys, often on websites? Are they any better? Probably not. Listing services are typically just advertisements. Like the phone book, cash is usually the only criteria for a service to list a family lawyer.

Ask yourself: Do listing services screen attorneys in any way?

Do they check …

• References of other attorneys?
• References of former clients?
• If a family lawyer has a disciplinary history?
• If a family lawyer is properly licensed?
• If family law a significant part of a lawyer's practice?

Listing services typically fail to answer any of these questions. They simply leave it up to you.

Client Referrals …

Client (non-lawyer) referrals usually make little sense. Why? Because clients rarely know enough about the process of practicing law to understand what their separation lawyer actually did for them. Or to understand if their separation lawyer did a quality job for them compared to other separation lawyers.

Could they have achieved a better result with another attorney? Were the results achieved by the separation lawyer typical for that lawyer?

It's not that client referrals can't be helpful, but they should be only one of several criteria that a person uses to hire an attorney.

The CheckedOutFamilyLawyers.com Method

CheckedOutFamilyLawyers.com provides the best way to find a quality, prescreened separation lawyer in your area. What do we mean by prescreened? We mean that we do the hard part. It's free, easy, and confidential.

We have a lawyer who works for us check out family lawyers for you, by doing out the following:

(1). We make sure family law is a substantial part of the lawyer's practice
(2). We make sure the family lawyers are properly licensed
(3). We make sure the family lawyers have no public record of professional discipline
(4). We speak to three former clients of the family lawyer who have had favorable experiences
(5). We speak to three other attorneys who speak highly of the family lawyer and their expertise in separation law

You can do some of what we do yourself. You can use our How to Check Out Lawyers page to check out a specific separation lawyer who you are already thinking about using. You can also use the links to check out any other lawyer. Alternatively, you can use CheckedOutFamilyLawyers.com to learn more about verified separation lawyers who we’ve already checked out.