Lori Loughlin’s and Felicity Huffman’s Choices and How that Relates to Your Divorce

As you may have heard, two actresses made very different choices when it came to the criminal charges against them. Lori Loughlin has decided to plead “not guilty”, while, it has been reported that Felicity Huffman has decided to plead “guilty”. Although their choices were made in the context of a criminal matter, they illustrate how different cases and situations result in different choices. This article explains some of the choices you have in your divorce matter.

In a divorce, there are two major choices to be made:

• Go to Trial; OR
• Settle

It is estimated that 95% of divorce cases settle. Of that amount, some people settle at the very last minute, meaning on the day of trial.

The reasons why people settle is that typically if you choose to go to trial, they will be spending a lot of money in attorney fees, while if they choose to settle, the opposite will most likely be true, as they will be saving a lot of money in attorney fees.

In addition, choosing to settle, typically results in a better outcome. This is because, in a trial, most Court Orders are not as extensive as the settlement agreement. This could mean that the Court’s order will leave out important details. In contrast, a settlement agreement usually is very detailed.

Of course, in some cases, choosing to go to trial may be the best option. In order to decide which choice you should make, you need to consult with your attorney.

There are many other choices that most likely will have to be made in your divorce case, they include:

• Housing: Do you choose to retain the marital home or do you choose to sell it. If you choose to try to retain it, for how long?
• Child Custody: Do you choose to agree to joint custody? Do you fight for sole custody?
• Parenting time: There are numerous choices to be made in deciding what your parenting time will be and what your spouse’s parenting time will be.

When signing an agreement, a client may state: “I had no choice”. That is incorrect, I tell them, that there is always a choice. Here, the choice is to either sign the agreement or if you don’t sign the agreement, then a Judge will make a decision. The client’s choice is to weigh out the positives and negatives of signing the agreement versus the potential outcome if the case goes to trial.

Divorce presents many choices. One of your first choices will be who you decide to hire for your attorney. If you are seeking an experienced attorney who will present all the choices and explain them to you, in plain English and how those choices affect you, then contact David Badanes, Esq. and the Badanes Law Office, P.C. Contact David Badanes and the Badanes Law Office, P.C. today at (631) 430-4445, email at david@dbnylaw.com or visit us on Facebook to get important legal news, tips, and articles: www.facebook.com/BadanesLawOffice.