Your First Steps After Divorce Papers
Divorce can be a stressful and sad time for most anyone. It may be a hard decision to make knowing that it entails a lot of mediation, agreement, and organization of assets. You may be wondering what the very first steps are after the divorce papers have been served. Here is what you should know.
Serving Your Spouse with Divorce Papers
In the action for divorce it’s initiated—ordinarily—by serving a Summons with Notice Action for Divorce on your spouse. That can happen in several different ways.
An attorney can have a process server go out to their residence or their place of work and serve them. You can send the Summons with Notice for Divorce to your spouse with an affidavit, which is signed by the spouse. Alternatively, you can have a notary serve him or her with the Summons with Notice Action for Divorce. Any of those ways are acceptable.
Responding to Divorce Papers
If you have been served the divorce papers, this question comes up, “What were you actually served with?” Were you served with a Summons with Notice Action for Divorce? Were you served with an Order to Show Cause?
You need to know what it was that you were actually served with, and then you can proceed from there. The best thing is to do is to speak with a Buffalo Divorce Attorney on the phone. Get into the office as quickly as possible. Show the documentation, and they can tell you exactly what the papers are without any misunderstanding.
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First Steps in the Divorce Process
The first step is filing a Summons with Notice Action for Divorce in the County Clerk’s office. The Summons with Notice Action for Divorce is a document that once served, places the other party on notice that you’ve initiated the action. It also articulates in the body of the summons, the relief that you are going to be seeking. From a practical standpoint that’s the initiation of the lawsuit. However, there’s a lot that needs to be done before you initiate the divorce proceeding.
First, you need to sit down with an attorney. Often, attorneys will offer a free, first-time consultation.
Secondly, you want to start collecting documentation. Information, which will be pertinent to the financial division of assets, tax returns, copies of information in regards to 401ks, IRA accounts, pensions, life insurance. Anything that you can put your hands on at the onset will allow your attorney, at that initial consultation, to give you a better understanding of what your rights are, and what to expect during the course of the proceedings.
If you need help starting your divorce, you want the best representation possible. Randy Gugino offers consultation and is dedicating to supporting you through difficult legal situations.
