Divorce is not something to be taken lightly as its consequences can last for years after it is finalized. The emotional strain of dissolving one’s most intimate relationship can take a heavy toll, and divorcing parties are often encouraged to seek counseling to help cope. The effects of divorce may not manifest themselves immediately during the divorce process, but they may become more obvious later. These are the dangers that Seattle divorce attorneys have been warning their clients of for years.

However, another set of legal and financial problems can arise if your divorce is done without the help of a Seattle divorce attorney. Washington State family law is a complex set of rules and policies designed to serve the interests of families, especially the best interests of children. The law’s complexity alone should alert you of the need to consult with a lawyer. But when you further consider what is at stake in a divorce proceeding, you’ll run, don’t walk to a Seattle divorce attorney.

A divorce court will decide nothing less than the fate of the most important things in your life. The court will decide where your children will live and how much they will visit with the other parent and which parent will make the important decisions about the children’s lives according to Seattle child custody law. It will decide how the marital property, including real property, will be divided between the parties. While property acquired by one party before the marriage is arguably that person’s separate property, the court has power over all the property in a divorce case and will divide it according to the law. Without a Seattle divorce attorney guiding your case, your property is at the mercy of the court. Further, the court will decide whether one party must pay spousal maintenance (alimony) to the other; and without a Seattle divorce attorney arguing the law in your favor, that could be quite a payment.

All of these issues are the expertise of the Seattle divorce attorney who can help you protect the most important things in life. McKinley Irvin Seattle divorce attorneys have represented hundreds of Seattle divorce clients and they can help you.