As the name implies, family lawyers deal with and specialize in all matters surrounding family law. These include child custody, divorce, and separation, among others. Given that these are all complicated familial situations, the purpose of having a good family lawyer is to ensure that even during such challenging situations, the best interests of the whole family, especially the children, are served.

It’s not all the time, however, that family lawyers are needed. Especially for minor issues with no permanent legal implications, you can forego hiring one. But there are situations where having a family lawyer is an absolute must.

This article lays down for you all the instances when it’s necessary to hire a family lawyer.

Child Custody Cases

During the process of separation or divorce, one of the biggest resulting issues the couple will have to decide on is child custody.

If both spouses are amicable toward each other, then child custody can be clear and well ironed out without a problem. But if the divorce or current situation of the family is a lot more severe, then child custody can be tricky.

A family lawyer is needed to assist in child custody cases when situations such as these arise:

• The other spouse has a lawyer. This means they’re putting up a fight to try as much as they can to prevent you from having child custody. You need to put yourself on equal footing, especially if that other spouse seems to be power tripping by having a lawyer on their side.
• The circumstances of your case changed, such as when you or the other parent has remarried or is living together with another partner, there’s strong evidence of domestic abuse and violence, or the other parent is now uncooperative with the custody agreement.
• The other parent is preventing you from seeing your child. There are situations when you can legally prohibit the other parent from being with the child, such as if they’ve been abusing drugs or alcohol, or if they’ve been convicted for a crime. But if those situations are absent, then no parent should be hindered from seeing their child after a divorce or separation. If this is the case for you, then you need a lawyer to fight for your rights since the other parent is no longer playing fair.

Divorce

A divorce is one of the most common personal and family situations where a family lawyer has to be called. There’s no doubt that a divorce can be a stressful ordeal not just for the couple but also for their children should they have any.

Once a couple decides to divorce, a family lawyer is needed to walk them through all of the legal processes involved and the implications that would come after the divorce. These include child support and property division. And when you have to follow strict laws of the court which you don’t know anything about, a family lawyer will expertly guide you.  For all these reasons, experts at Ogden Divorce Attorney suggest that, without a family lawyer, the divorce process can be a lot trickier, messier, and more expensive when it isn’t immediately resolved.

Domestic Abuse And Violence

If your spouse or partner starts abusing you, whether it’s physical or emotional abuse, fight for your right to protection. If you have kids, they should never be made to grow up in a household where abuse is a norm.

A family lawyer can help free you from an abusive and violent spouse. This legal professional can advise you on the statutory protections that may apply to your circumstances. Not only is this for your safety, but it’s also for your peace of mind knowing that the abuse committed by your spouse will be answered for.

Guardianship Proceedings

If a parent dies or when parents separate or divorce, there’s also the issue of guardianship over the minor children. This shouldn’t be a problem if there’s still one parent who can afford to care for them and provide them with love and support.

But if both parents are gone, then a family lawyer is needed to proceed with guardianship proceedings. This refers to the selection of an eligible legal guardian—whether it’s a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or any other relative—who can look after the children, handle their finances, and ensure proper asset control.

This guardianship agreement ends only when the children are of legal age and can already legally make decisions for and by themselves.

Conclusion

As you can see, all the situations above are challenging ones to be in. They become even more difficult if there are children involved. To ease your burden, it’s advisable to turn to a family lawyer who can walk you through such personal and familial problems. With their help, you can ensure that the rights of all parties will be respected and protected no matter how volatile your relationships with one another are.