How And Where To Get Help When Getting a Divorce In Indiana
If your headed for divorce court in Indiana and you've got anything worth protecting, hire a lawyer. Divorce in Indiana can be a complex matter requiring expert legal guidance in order to stay clear of permanent and devastating pitfalls. Those that represent themselves, a.k.a. "pro se litigants", often find out too late that the courtroom is no place for amateurs. In its most basic terms, divorce in Indiana can be boiled down to four main issues: custody, visitation, child support, and division of the marital estate.
Within these four categories, however, lurks a long list of subordinate issues. The devil is in these details, as they say, and this is where attorneys earn their keep. While child support and visitation are typically handled by guidelines that have a tendency to remove those issue from the wrestling mat, child custody, for example, can be a very polarizing and emotionally charged issue that snares litigants into expensive and protracted courtroom battles. Many parents don't realize that the standard for awarding custody at the final hearing stage is legally determined by a far simpler criteria than the criteria required to modify custody. In the former, one must merely prove that it is in the best interest of the child to be with one party rather than the other. In contested modification cases, however, you must essentially prove the custodial parent unfit or incapable of carrying on in that capacity.
Other issues which may elude the attention of self represented people seeking a divorce in Indiana include, pensions, business evaluations, property owned prior to marriage, dissipation of marital assets, spousal maintenance, parental alienation syndrome, tax ramifications, disparity in income, and more. Self represented persons must also navigate the courtroom procedures by adhering to the Indiana Trial Rules and the Indiana Rules of Evidence.
Perhaps the most important information people seeking a divorce in Indiana should know is that once the property is divided and the issue is reduced to a final decree signed by a judge, the property settlement is permanent. The only way to change it is to appeal it or to seek a modification by mutual agreement. Child custody, visitation and support, however, are always subject to modification where circumstances warrant it.
Additionally, reading the law and knowing the law are often two different things. In Indiana, for example, the statutory requirements to emancipate a child are that the child be over the age of 18, and be out of school for a period of more than 4 months, and be capable of supporting him or herself. While these statutory requirements may seem clear on their face, they don't necessarily mean what they appear to say. In Indiana, the Supreme Court has ruled that in order to prove that a child is capable of supporting him or herself, the petitioner must prove that the child is actually working and supporting themselves.
This Supreme Court ruling essentially spells out the test for proving what "capable" means in that context. In legal terms, that is called judicial gloss and that is just one of many examples of how pro se litigants miss the boat when it comes to understanding the law. If you've got anything worth protecting, and you are going through a divorce in Indiana, play it smart and hire a good attorney.
Within these four categories, however, lurks a long list of subordinate issues. The devil is in these details, as they say, and this is where attorneys earn their keep. While child support and visitation are typically handled by guidelines that have a tendency to remove those issue from the wrestling mat, child custody, for example, can be a very polarizing and emotionally charged issue that snares litigants into expensive and protracted courtroom battles. Many parents don't realize that the standard for awarding custody at the final hearing stage is legally determined by a far simpler criteria than the criteria required to modify custody. In the former, one must merely prove that it is in the best interest of the child to be with one party rather than the other. In contested modification cases, however, you must essentially prove the custodial parent unfit or incapable of carrying on in that capacity.
Other issues which may elude the attention of self represented people seeking a divorce in Indiana include, pensions, business evaluations, property owned prior to marriage, dissipation of marital assets, spousal maintenance, parental alienation syndrome, tax ramifications, disparity in income, and more. Self represented persons must also navigate the courtroom procedures by adhering to the Indiana Trial Rules and the Indiana Rules of Evidence.
Perhaps the most important information people seeking a divorce in Indiana should know is that once the property is divided and the issue is reduced to a final decree signed by a judge, the property settlement is permanent. The only way to change it is to appeal it or to seek a modification by mutual agreement. Child custody, visitation and support, however, are always subject to modification where circumstances warrant it.
Additionally, reading the law and knowing the law are often two different things. In Indiana, for example, the statutory requirements to emancipate a child are that the child be over the age of 18, and be out of school for a period of more than 4 months, and be capable of supporting him or herself. While these statutory requirements may seem clear on their face, they don't necessarily mean what they appear to say. In Indiana, the Supreme Court has ruled that in order to prove that a child is capable of supporting him or herself, the petitioner must prove that the child is actually working and supporting themselves.
This Supreme Court ruling essentially spells out the test for proving what "capable" means in that context. In legal terms, that is called judicial gloss and that is just one of many examples of how pro se litigants miss the boat when it comes to understanding the law. If you've got anything worth protecting, and you are going through a divorce in Indiana, play it smart and hire a good attorney.