Dissolution of Marriage Procedure

We at Attorney Alternatives realize that filing a Dissolution of Marriage (Divorce) can be an agonizing and difficult decision. As we are not attorneys being paid by the hour, we do not wish to “stretch out” your divorce. We get paid the same affordable, flat fee whether your divorce takes three months or three years.

Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with our procedures.

Step One: Initial Visit

At your initial visit you will be asked to fill out some forms in order to provide us with the information we need to type your Divorce papers. As we are not attorneys, if you require legal advice or need to know your rights, we suggest you consult with an attorney prior to starting a case with us.

After you complete the information forms, we will type your information into the court-approved forms and call you when your papers are ready, usually within one week.

We will require a deposit in the amount of one-half of our fee before we begin typing your papers. We accept all major credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, Debit Cards), cash, personal checks, and money orders for payment. If you change your mind and decide that you do not wish to proceed, you must notify us within 24 hours, unless you have requested that we type your papers immediately. After 24 hours, your deposit is non-refundable and the balance of our typing fees will be due whether you actually file your case or not. Why? Because we start typing your papers almost immediately and if we spend hours typing your divorce packet, we would appreciate being paid for our time.

Step Two: Review & Sign Papers

At your second visit, you will be asked to review your papers for accuracy. Please check all of the information very carefully, as these papers will be submitted to the Court. It is your responsibility to inform us if any information is incorrect. We will be more than happy to correct any information prior to filing (in the rare case that we made an error), but any corrections required after your papers have been filed may result in additional fees, depending on how much work is involved.

After you approve the accuracy of the information, you will be required to sign your papers in several places. We will notarize your forms and there is no additional fee to do so.

Please do not make an appointment to sign your papers if you are not prepared to pay the balance of our fee. No post-dated checks and no exceptions! Additionally, in order for us to file your papers at court, you will have to provide us a money order or check (must have your name on the account) made payable to Clerk of Court. The filing fee is $409.00. If you are paying our balance by check, we will not file your papers until we know that your check has cleared. This may take a few weeks. If you would like your papers filed immediately, please pay Attorney Alternatives’ balance by cash, money order or credit card.

Please be aware that we will type all forms contained in the divorce packet that you request, however, the court, not us, will determine how long your divorce will take. Factors such as the time of year and the court’s case-load will determine how long it takes to get your divorce.

If you and your spouse have minor children (under 18) from your marriage, the court will order you to complete a “Parenting education class”. There are no exceptions! You and your spouse must take this class! The class is offered online or at various locations throughout the county (ask us for details). This class is designed to inform parents how to help their children deal with divorce.

The Court also may require that you attend mediation to make sure that all issues are addressed in writing (to avoid disputes in the future).

Getting your spouse to sign the divorce papers

Upon signing your papers, please notify us how you wish to proceed:

1) You may bring your spouse in to sign the papers at the same time or they may make an appointment to sign at a different time;

2) We can mail the papers to your spouse. They must sign their papers in front of a notary and return them to us so we may file them at court;

3) We can have the Clerk of Court forward your papers to the Sheriff to serve the papers to your spouse (additional fee, depending on where your spouse lives);

4) If you have honestly tried all means to locate your spouse and cannot locate them, the court packet contains forms with a checklist of various searches you must conduct in order to try and locate your spouse. However, this will involve an additional $194.00 for a legal newspaper to publish your legal ad and the laws are complex in this area. A consultation with an attorney may be appropriate.

Final Hearing

After you request that we file your Motion to set the Final Hearing, the date and time will be set by the court. At this point your case is entirely in the court’s hands. If you would like to check on the progress of your case, DO NOT CALL US. You must call the court to inquire about the status. You may also check online at http://courtcon.co.palm-beach.fl.us/pls/jiwp/ck_public_qry_main.cp_main_idx. We have provided the court’s phone numbers at the end of this packet for your convenience. WE WILL NOT RECEIVE NOTIFICATION OF YOUR FINAL HEARING DATE.

IF YOU ARE PLANNING ON MARRYING IMMEDIATELY AFTER YOUR DIVORCE, DO NOT PLAN A WEDDING DATE UNTIL YOU RECEIVE YOUR FINAL HEARING DATE. IF THE COURT IS BACKLOGGED, YOU MAY BE FORCED TO CANCEL YOUR WEDDING.

If at any time, your divorce becomes contested, we suggest that you consult with an attorney. Many attorneys offer low-cost or free consultations. We can still file the papers to complete your divorce, but it may be necessary for you to receive legal advice to know how you should proceed.