I have been separated from my husband for two years, and we have a 13-year-old son. I would like to file for divorce this year, and we have an agreed-on 50/50 custody. What is the easiest and inexpensive way to get a divorce… I can’t afford an attorney, so what are my options??
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legal aid in your county.
or use an online law firm if you have one. i used one for mine and it was $395. they did everything and mailed me my signed paperwork when it was finalized. took a month.
Not sure what state you live in but there should be a legal aid office available. Check legal aid online.
You can file yourself. It cost me around $240 to do in in WA.
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I went n got the paper work, and filed a waiver and never had to pay a dime!
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Probate or family court may have the applications or papers you could fill out depends on your state and county .
I filed myself, got a fee waiver form. Followed all the steps from my states legal help site.
Do it yourself!!! 
U can print forms from online. If its amicable fill out, sign, file.
You can print the forms off the internet. I have known 2 people who did it that way and it was easy and cheap
You can file yourself. And if you both agree to absolutely everything, it will be faster. You’ll have the first 1 or 2 hearings (maybe, not everyone does) but after that, you can literally walk in together and have it signed and finalized on the spot.
Ps just call or go to your local clerk of court office they will tell you what you need to do.
Considering your circumstance and county city or state.You have to file in the area the marriage took place if im not mistaken.However that may have changed not sure
It depends on your state all the logistics, but you can do it yourself.
Download the forms online and there is also free assistance at most most courthouses. Go online for the county courthouse that pertains to you. It’s very easy as long as both parties are in agreement.
Most states allow you to do it yourself if there isn’t any property, assets and so on. They also may have you do a class since you do have a child together. If you dont make alot of money you can get a waiver for any costs. Again, all depends on what the state’s laws are. Good luck!
Knowledge yourself on the paper work, its a lot
Every state is different.
It still costs a decent amount to file with or without an attorney. Good luck
Uncontested divorce. U will still need a lawyer to draw it up and get it all sorted to send to the judge.
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Wait until tomorrow, it’s Valentine’s Day.
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Every Courthouse has a law library with all the papers that you will need you can fill them out yourself and file them yourself
Paralegal, they do all the paper work. And you pay them for services. Or legal aid.
Depends on the state. Some do uncontested where both parties are cooperating and its pretty cheap. Thats what i did in mn
I did mine myself as long as you don’t have a house and cars together…its pretty easy…paid 180$ just fill out the paperwork your husband has to sign too send it back. Within 90 days i was free then paid 40$ to get my maiden name back…good luck
Look into a Dissolution it’s the same thing because both parties it’s cheaper but it depends on the state
Most courts have the forms. I would start by calling the court. Additionally almost every state has pro bono and legal aid groups.
If you guys agree, then go to the court house and get the divorce papers. You can fill them out, sign them, and file them together. Then all you have to do is go before the judge to have it finalized. No need for attorneys. If you aren’t in agreement; then attorneys may be necessary if you can’t come to an agreement in mediation.
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Dissolution vs a divorce if you can agree on things. Over much more quickly.
File and do yr own divorce…its basically a fill in the blank paperwork…should be able to get paperwork at court house or online
Stay with 5050 And when you can down road get your lawyer best keep way it is for now.god bless you and your family
I’m using a paralegal right now $1400 that’s including paying for the ex to get served his papers (we live 6 hours from each other)
Like many have said,it depends on your state and county. I filed both of my uncontested divorces without any legal representation. The forms were free online. My first marriage had children, the second had property. We typed out detailed agreements and signed them in front of a notary, along with the required legal forms. Then, we just paid filing fees. Call the courthouse where you live but they likely won’t be helpful. They’ll at least be able to tell you what the filing fees are.
Some counties have a self-help center for child custody / divorce. If you two are both in agreement, it is pretty easy. If I could give any tips it would be to read every single line of the paperwork very carefully. Fill everything out that you can.
I did my own divorce with the help of a Do It Yourself Divorce for Dummies. You need to get the one for your city, as I did bc it has all the right paperwork you need to file for your county. They give you step by step instructions and even include the proper wording the judge wants to hear for your child support,etc. I had no problems getting my divorce this way.
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Go to your local court house and open a case, if you’re below a certain income you can get a waiver for the fees
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Mediation! Most courts have court approved mediators ( I am one in our county) and our court system even pays for the mediation service! If paying out of pocket it’s still much cheaper than an attorney!
If you agree just fill out the paperwork. You Will go through mediation and as long as youre on the same page you just sign the divorce papers. The child is a different form you fill it outand if you agree sign the paper. You dont need a lawyer if you botb agree of everything.
I agree with a couple other people that suggested having your papers state who gets to claim your child on taxes (every other yr switch?) who carries medical/dental insurance and pays deductible (both of you, one of you). Things may be amicable now, and hopefully will remain so, however if, in the future, it was to change, it’s good to have it in writing. It protects all of you.
Go to google and type in “Do It Yourself Divorce Packet” with the state you are in, print it off fill it out as the directions say and it take it to your clerks office in your local courthouse. That’s what my husband did with his ex and they have two boys together. Their custody was a whole different court hearing
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I filed for divorce without an attorney. If you agree on things it’s not hard. You have to fill out the paperwork and take it to the superior court. There are fees involved but they are minimal. You can go to Maricopa superior court website for the fee schedule.
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Still get a lawyer or legal aid. Share custody most times never work in the long run. You are forgetting about who claims child at year on taxes, braces for child, clothes and simple school expenses, car for child when 16. College cost. Health and life insurance. Think for your child for the future. Good luck
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If you guys agree on everything and there’s no property that needs to be divided the paperwork is super easy and the filing fee is usually under $500.
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Just download the packet for a simplified dissolution online for your state. You have to have lived in the state for at least a year. Some states have other restrictions such as a mandatory separation period or counseling also. But you just pay the fee at the courthouse to file around $50. Then around $400 court fees.
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I filed paperwork and asked for reduced fees. Had to go to court 1st for the fees & I was able to get a reduced amount & that also applies to him being served. I did everything myself & had it easy my ex never came to court. It’ll be 1 yr tomorrow it was final. Best Valentine’s present ever!!!
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If you and your soon-to-be ex agree to use one lawyer, most divorce lawyers offer an inexpensive flat fee uncontested divorce. You will both need to sign some paperwork in front of a notary and one of you shows up in court (whoever filed). Typically a few hundred dollars.
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In Arizona i filed them myself with the help of a free agency that went over my paper work and made any necessary adjustments. I was directed towards the people that helped after I tried doing it ALL by myself and the judge didn’t even want to speak to me because he didn’t like my visitation plan. I walked out of there crying. One of the court ladies told me that he wasn’t even a family court judge and that it’d be best to seek for help so that I didn’t have to go through that again. Well when the second judge saw my papers he thought the reason I got denied before was silly. Good luck you’ve got this.
File in the South, the North seems to baby the men.
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If you can both agree on everything you can do it yourself. Most states have all the paperwork online or at the courthouse.
Be sure you have who’s going to pay for braces,wisdom teeth, insurance and college. I think its fair to have a life insurance policy on each naming your child beneficiary. And who gets to claim him on filing taxes.
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When two people can be adults and work together is awesome for the kids and everyone . Divorce shouldn’t be a battle zone
I filled out my paper work
Told him where to sign .
Got it notarized
Filed it .It was a done one.
I used a paralegal to handle mine. So much cheaper, but they are the people who do all the filing for the lawyers anyway.
Look up law library where you live, if you have one they can help walk you through best option for your area… I was able to get the paperwork and help filling it out at my local law library it cost me $20 for the papers the rest was free, filled it myself with the paperwork for not being able to pay, my ex signed the paperwork saying he understood and agreed but would not appear he paid a notary and he to signed the paperwork saying he couldn’t pay… went to court once was asked couple question by the judge and was granted my divorce… I know other people who have it more complicated and had to hire a lawyer and it was same county I did mine in… so hope this helps
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My ex and I did the paperwork ourselves, I Google it and did it, got it signed and notarized and filed, it was $380 for the filing fee on my county but that’s all we paid
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Legal zoom… but most attorneys will work with you.
Just get an attorney. What he says now may be totally different a year from now. You want to make sure you know you’ve covered all your bases.
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My divorce was easy I paid my lawyer $750…cheapest one I could find and he did all the work court date came around ex didn’t show up didn’t bother to fight me on custody or anything as long as he didn’t have to pay child support or alimony got sole legal custody of kids and he has been out of our lives for 3 years will be 4 come November
If everything is agreed on you can go to the courthouse for the paperwork. Where I’m at it costs around $300. Maybe a little more. If your income is low then see if you qualify for legal aid. I got mine for free. We made my ex pay for all of the costs. I’d rather have a lawyer because you never know how he can react. It’s been two years. He might get his feathers ruffled if he finds out you filed first.
Just file and they’ll have a court appointed mediator. That’s when you finalize all those things.
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I’m a legal assistant. The answer really depends on what state you live in, but here in NY, you can get all the documents you need online. If you both agree to EVERYTHING, then you can both sign the docs and file. You will have to pay the fees which come out to just under $500.00 (there is no way around this) and you probably won’t even have to appear in Court. Keep in mind though, with Covid, the courts are way behind. Good luck!
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You can do the forms through ocap and file it through the courts. You can also file a fee waive and get it reduced or for free.
File the paperwork yourself, if everything is agreed upon you can have a MAS signed by both you and notarized. But depends on state, I am in California…
Both go in and agree to terms and judge signs off
I guess it depends what state your in
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I printed it out at library then filed
Get papers off internet and then go to court house and file
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You can file all the paperwork yourself
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We The people in Ceres
Always have a lawyer
Find a certified legal document preparer.
Mediation is fairly inexpensive.
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Damn look at all these certified Facebook lawyers
I went through legal aid
Some employers offer EAP which has legal advice free consultation of 30 minutes with a discounted rate if you retain services and same for mediation services l would check with your employer to see if that’s an option. It’s a free service and confidential.
Go to tidyform.com and find the free templates for the divorce papers. I dont know what state you’re in, but they do have custody templates as well for most states.
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Get a good attorney.
Talk to the court facilitator. I got all my paperwork done for free
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Try googling the county you live in. Many have step by step instructions and paperwork online that you can complete and file.
In Ohio you can get the documents for free from clerk of courts and only pay the filing fee. If you can’t do that in your state, try Legal Zoom.
If, in GA, with minor children, you both will have to go to parenting classes.
I wrote my own and filed it at court house. It wasn’t expensive at all…
We filed ourselves, we agreed on holiday, weekends, insurance, child support. We have joint custody everything very civil. As it goes we are still living together we divorced in 2013.
Depends on the state
If you live in PA there is a lawyer based outta Pittsburgh that will file for you for about $250 as long as you agree on everything. It takes about a total of 6-9 months for everything to be final
Google it 
I live in GA and there is a website…galawlibrary…it has the forms you will need. You can also print the Paupers Affidavit…a form you fill out and see if judge will sign it, if they sign it, all court fees are waived. Check your state and see if they have the law library website
In my area there’s neighborhood legal it was around $200 and as long as you agree on everything sign, papers, wait sign more papers, divorced, party!!!even though we had been separated for a couple of years we still had to be legally separated for 6 months before we could actually sign the divorce papers
Why did someone laugh at this? And why is a guy even in this group?
If it’s uncontested do it yourself.
I didn’t have a lawyer when I got divorced. I represented myself. I didn’t see a point in paying thousands of dollars for someone to tell the judge the same things I said 
I walked out of that courtroom with everything I would’ve gotten with a lawyer. As long as it’s mutual than it should be easy.
File yourself go to library print up the documents sign notarized and file with courts yourself you will pay a filling fee its called a non contested divorce
That’s very true I did it
Depends on state/province & country!! Here In Ontario Canada, u can walk into the court house & file for a divorce for about $500 or $10 with proof that your low income!!. If you both agree & everything’s split, custody agreed upon, then it’s a quick divorce. If one dissagrees, with something then it’s more complicated but can still be done this way. I’m considered low income as I barely make ended meet(or sometimes don’t even!) So it only cost me $10!! To file for my agreed upon divorce!! It was so easy!!
Try to get uncontested
Papers from library fill out turn in if low income file for waiver and bam done
If you’re not fighting over any custody or property, then it’s super easy. I just filed the papers at the court house, got a court date for about 3 months later, we both showed up and said we’re not fighting over anything, signed some papers, and divorce was finalized. This was just on 12/29. Super quick & easy!
Go to your county clerk web site and see what kind of divorce they offer. The regular divorce you need lawyers and is a whole show. There is non contested divorce where you both go and ask for a divorce together. Half the price. In FL you can annul a marriage so that’s also an option given here. But I am sure most states are the same. Google county clerk office and then look for divorce. You’ll see the options you have.
I think it depends on what your laws are wherever you live. I helped someone file for divorce online and through mail. They didn’t have kids, but the paperwork was the same. Maybe a few extra documents. Nonetheless, it was so simple and straight forward. No lawyers were needed. Just a notary and witness.
If you both agree, just go to the court house and get paperwork. There’s a small fee for the first set. Once those are filled out and signed you get your next set of papers that’s a bit more expensive, only about $200 ish. Once you fill those out and sign them just take them back, and you’ll have a meeting with the judge eventually. Bam you’re done. My ex and I did our own divorce and it was so much cheaper.
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If you both agree on the actual divorce you can do it online for like $250 but that if you don’t want terms in there for alimony or child support or custody.
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I would not do it online. Put something on paper and signed by a judge as far as money and child custody. If you don’t it will come back and bite you in the ass (I did it and worst mistake I have ever made.)