New Jersey Child Support Attorney

There is an old saying that a person who represents himself in court has a fool for a client.  This is especially true when it comes to family court.  Going without an attorney for just about every issue is rarely a smart move.  Just look at all us family law attorneys out there.  Someone is hiring all of us to keep us all in business right?  

First, you are not an attorney but the court will hold you to the same standard.  Thus, you are expected to know the law and the procedure.  If you are not a mechanic, would you build a car?  Of course not.  However, the Internet gives some people the feeling like they can read a few pages, print out some forms and walk into the court and perform magic.  That’s not to say that this is impossible.  Some people have been able to do this but, in my opinion, these people are hard to find. 

Another problem is that some people think that they can do this because they did it once or twice and it worked for them.  For many, it eventually catches up to them and they realize that they have bitten off more than they can chew. 

While cost is a major issue, you should look at hiring an attorney as an investment.  Hiring a good attorney can save you a ton of money in the long run.  In addition, not having to worry about forms and motions, if they are filled out right, if you got the law right and if you filed them right is a lot of stress off of you. 

In addition, hiring an attorney now can help you avoid hiring an attorney for even more money in the future. One thing I’ve heard many, many times is “I wish I would have come to you first”.  While I hear that from some people who went with a different attorney first, I also hear that a lot from people who go alone.  The reason they say this is because it is often much more expensive to hire an attorney to clean up the mess you created by going pro se than it would be to just hire that attorney in the first place.  While that might mean more money in my pocket, that’s not really what I am all about.  I would much rather have a client save money by hiring me first and pocketing the rest of the money they would have paid me to do the appeal.  Odd for an attorney to say, I know, but I’m in this business to help people.

A major reason to hire an attorney is that the system just tends to act differently when you have one.  I say the system because it is everything and everyone.  I find it hard to explain this phenomenon but one way I look at it is that when you go without an attorney, judges, court staff and others may feel that there is no one looking.  Our court system is over burdened and no one likes to deal with pro se litigants.  Thus, cutting corners may be a quick way to move your case.  Since your not an attorney, how would you know if everything is being done correctly?

Yet another reason is what we attorneys call, “making a record”.  When you file an appeal, you don’t get to do the whole case over again.  Instead, an appeal is an argument to a higher court that the lower judge did something wrong.  In addition, you generally can’t make new arguments since the lower judge would not have had the opportunity to consider them.  Thus, if you did not make the proper arguments at the trial level, it may be very difficult for an attorney to later help you in an appeal. 

In summary, there is rarely a reason not to hire an attorney.  However, some people filing routine motions or motions involving very little money may not find that hiring an attorney is a good investment.  The best part is, it won’t cost you anything to find out what you should do.  Most attorneys, such as myself, have free consultations.  Furthermore, honest attorneys, also like myself, will tell clients whether or not they should even bother taking a certain course of action.  I talk myself out of buiness all of the time because I explain the costs and risks associated with what my clients are looking for.  As I tell them, I would rather not have their money than taking their money under a false pretense or without them fully understanding the remote chances that they have of getting what they want.  However, I find that being honest with one client, will get you many more clients in the future.