can you get a divorce without a lawyer

someone told me that in La. you can file for a divorce without a lawyer. has anyone ever heard of that.  she told me I can go to the clerk of court office and for $300.00 I can file my own divorce as long as butt hole does not contest it.      

Kateri in La.

In Texas, u may represent yourself Pro-se....it really only works if the divorce is amicable and you are going to agree on the terms to it.  If its going to be contested, then its recommended that you hire an atty.  Does LA have a Legal Aid?  They help you based on ur income, but sometimes they are backlogged because they are shortstaffed. 

There are several forms that you will need to submit and of course every state is different.  if you go to freetexasforms.org you can see an example of what the divorce forms look like for Texas. You choose whether you have children or not because that is a big issue that needs to be laid out in the petition and final decree.  

Hope someone can help you...go to ur local law library and ask if they have form books for family law specifically divorce.  See if they can show them or point u in the right direction.  Librarians are limited to what we can and cant say because we cannot give legal advice. Its illegal in Tex. La of course might be different.  good luck!

Monica

not only can you get a divorce without a lawyer, you can get one without ever having been legally married.... my daughter did both.....  and she was in Colorado...... but any one can be their own lawyer... even in a divorce......  even when the other party does contest it..... but if they do and they have a lawyer it makes it harder to win or to get a decent split of assets....

Well, to clarify a point of Karen's, you can get a divorce if you were considered married under the common law (vs. a marriage w. a license granted) of a particular state.   Texas still recognizes common law marriages, but very few states still do.  To be a common law marriage is surprisingly simple in Texas, requiring (1) cohabitation (i.e. living together under the same roof) and (2) holding yourselves out to others as husband and wife on previous occasions (i.e. "Mr and Mrs. Jones") ..     If you are c.l. married in Texas, then any state you later move to can dissolve the marriage after you become a resident there, b/c that state must give "full faith and credit" to the laws of any other state, under the U.S. Constitution ..     (thatis why you see divorces now being granted  - or should be granted - in Texas for same-sex couples, although Texas does not recognize such marriages itself b/c of state law here  ).     

The main issue will be your daughter and her custody and support.  You need to make sure that you have that taken care of or a judge will not grant the divorce.  My daughter was 17 when I went to court and the judge showed concern that the paperwork was straight for her.  

You are absolutely correct. I know each clerk of court has their own set fees so you might want to check on that.  A notary can also prepare and do it for you. 

Kateri, yes you can, go to the Clerk's office and find out the process they require.  If your ex doesn't contest the divorce it works, if he fights you then you will need an attorney to protect both yourself and your daughter.

Good Luck!

Normally - it is not recommended to do a "Do it Yourself" divorce is there are minor children involved. It is imperative that you protect your daughter - I was able to get a pro-bono attorney when I divorced my first husband - I would imagine with some looking you should be able to find one too. (Lawyers generally are required to do a certain amount of pro-bono work each year.)

Good Luck.
Anne

Kateri,

My sister did her own divorce a few years ago from a book she rented at a library.

She did not have any kids or property with her ex so it was real easy to do.

It gets complicated when there is property, kids, and 401k's and pensions involved.

Good luck.

My divorce was done off documents we printed off a website.  We had no property, no childeren.  The whole decree was a whopping 2 pages long.

I made him pay for it tho.  (wicked grin)  I think the court fees and filing costs came up to a little over $300.