Going through a divorce process is among the difficult challenges in one’s lifetime. It involves the same type of trauma and grief experienced when a loved one dies. However, despite the challenges, it is important to protect yourself.
How do you do this? By getting emotional and practical help necessary to overcome the process.
But first, you should understand what the legal process in a divorce looks like. Many divorcing spouses are often surprised to learn about different types of divorce. In this article, we shall focus on the contested divorce process and why it is necessary to seek contested divorce help from competent attorneys.
What Is A Contested Divorce?
Here, the divorcing spouses disagree on one, two, or all issues relating to their divorce. Such issues include child custody, alimony, and child support.
Further, the court also considers a divorce contested if one party wants to end their marriage and the other doesn’t.
An uncontested divorce is where the divorcing parties agree on all legal grounds for divorce. The spouses then sign an agreement and present it to the court for approval.
Here are the main reasons why you should consider contesting your divorce.
- Best Interest of Children
What happens if parents can’t agree on a co-parenting arrangement? The court’s jurisdiction is invited to decide on the visitation and custody rights.
Even better, the judge is required by law to make a decision that serves the best interest of the child. Therefore, the court takes into consideration the emotional, financial, and physical well-being of the child, and the parent’s ability to provide for the child. Further, the judge checks for any act or inactions by a parent which might indicate a strained parent-child relationship in making their decision.
- Concealment of Assets
Do you know that most spouses hide their assets from each other during their marriage? Well, this is worse in divorce proceedings.
When a spouse conceals an asset from the court, the judge will not take the property into account. Therefore, the property will not be subjected to the final determination of the court. Additionally, such property may impact the spousal maintenance determination, if any, and child support.
Contesting the divorce is the only remedy to this concealment. It gives the spouse and their attorneys the discovery tools necessary for identifying all assets owned by the couple. With this, all parties to the divorce are placed on a level playing field.
- The Spousal Maintenance
Spousal support in many cases after a divorce; however, it’s not uncommon for spouses to disagree on this. So, what happens if these parties disagree?
The spouse seeking maintenance can contest their divorce in court. Such spouses should also prove to the court that they gave up significant opportunities like jobs or businesses during the marriage.
The court, in its discretion, can approve or deny a request for spousal maintenance. Some reasons why the judge may grant spousal support include:
- Where one party suffers from an impairment that makes it impossible for them to work.
- If a spouse is a caregiver to a disabled child.
- Unrealistic Expectations
A divorce process like other family law issues is about negotiation and compromises. For an amicable solution to be found, parties must agree to compromise on their expectations.
However, what happens if one party doesn’t want to compromise? Then contesting the divorce process in court is the only remedy. Yes, the process is cumbersome and expensive, but it helps avoid the possibility of an unfair divorce settlement.
Conclusion
A divorce whether contested or not is an arduous process for any person to go through. While processing an uncontested divorce is easy, a contested divorce ensures that the concerns of each party are addressed with the help of a competent and experienced divorce attorney.