Aurora, CO Family Lawyer
Family law is a broad legal field that impacts individuals in Aurora in numerous ways. Regardless of the family issue you are facing, working with a skilled attorney can help resolve the matter with the least amount of stress.
YouLaw offers an innovative approach to help clients save time and money without losing out on quality legal representation. Whether meeting online or in an office in Aurora, YouLaw can answer questions and come up with strategies to help solve your legal matter. Whether you are going through a divorce, adjusting child support payments, or adopting a child, our firm can help. By working with a lawyer, you can focus on moving forward and planning for the next chapter in life, knowing that your legal interests are being cared for. Many family law issues can be settled quickly in this collaborative environment.
For your free case review with an experienced family attorney, contact YouLaw Colorado at (720) 815-4421.
How Our Family Lawyer Can Help You with Your Case in Aurora, CO
Some of the most sensitive legal issues people deal with come under the umbrella of “family” law. This broad field of law includes divorces, financial disputes between family members, and child custody. However, our experienced family lawyer can also help you with a number of other matters, including preparing for a marriage or adopting a child. Family law cases are often highly emotional, and the outcome can be life-altering. Having a lawyer on your side can ensure your interests are protected. The following are the types of family law cases in which you will want an attorney representing you:
Divorce
Unfortunately, divorce is one of the more common issues in family law. In Aurora and throughout Colorado, the law refers to divorce as a “dissolution of marriage,” but they mean the same thing. While divorces are expected to be highly contentious affairs, much of the stress can be reduced by using divorce mediation. In fact, the court requires mediation before allowing a full court hearing.
Divorce mediation is often a much faster and cheaper alternative to litigating a divorce in court, with some divorces being completed in a single day. During mediation, both spouses can come together and work through their issues in a less stressful setting than in a courtroom. The mediator will help them determine how to fairly split assets and custody if children are involved. Divorce mediation is also confidential.
High-Asset Divorce
When a marriage involving high net worth is dissolved, the spouses often need legal help to divide the assets. Many cases involve splitting property acquired during the marriage equitably. If there was a prenuptial agreement, property obtained before the marriage would be off-limits unless a challenge to the prenup can be made. However, a spouse usually does not need to share an inheritance or gift they received after getting married.
Child Custody
While commonly referred to as child custody, Colorado law uses the term “parental responsibility” when discussing who has custody of a child. Determining parental responsibility is often one of the most contentious parts of a divorce. However, the courts prefer both parents have an active role in the child’s life if it is in their best interest.
During divorce mediation, our lawyer can help you create a plan for parental responsibility with your spouse. Your and your spouse’s needs can be assessed, and the best allocation of the child’s time can be made. This tends to make the process less stressful as you can plan ahead for holidays and educational decisions.
Child Support
Determining and restructuring child support payments are other important family matters that our attorney can help you with. During mediation, spouses can usually reach an arrangement based on the child’s needs. The flexibility mediation provides allows spouses to determine an appropriate amount of monthly payments and how future expenses should be handled.
However, sometimes, the court decides what amount of child support should be set. According to Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-115(2)(b), the court bases the amount of child support on the parents’ financial resources, the living standard the child would have if not for the divorce, and the child’s financial resources. The court can also consider the physical, emotional, and educational needs when making its decision, along with any other factors it deems relevant to deciding the issue.
Alimony
During a divorce, a spouse might request monthly payments, either indefinitely or temporarily. However, Colorado laws do not use the term alimony. Instead, it refers to spousal payments as “maintenance.” Like most family law issues, maintenance can be negotiated with the help of our attorney.
If maintenance is disputed, the court will determine whether it is called for under the circumstances. To do so, the court will assess each spouse’s gross income, the property retained in the divorce, their financial resources, and the financial needs they acquired during the marriage, according to Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-114(3)(a)(I). If the court determines maintenance is fair in the case, it will then decide the amount and duration of the payments.
Prenuptial Agreements
A prenuptial agreement, or “prenup,” can help protect a spouse’s assets in the event of divorce. While some people believe prenuptial agreements take the romance out of an upcoming marriage, they are simply a tool that recognizes no one knows what the future holds. A prenup helps future spouses plan for how assets will be divided if the unfortunate should occur. Our attorney is skilled in drafting these agreements and can help you and your soon-to-be spouse come to an arrangement that works for you both.
Separation Agreements
In some cases, spouses would rather enter into a separation agreement than legally dissolve the marriage at this time. Through a separation agreement, spouses can get the time and space they need to decide whether to continue their marriage. Like a divorce, the court can still divide property and assets in the manners described above. The difference is that the marriage is not dissolved, so a spouse cannot remarry until legally divorced.
Adoption
Adoption is a great way to provide a loving home to a child in need of one. Unfortunately, the adoption process is known to be highly stressful and intensive. This makes sense, of course. The state and adoption agencies are responsible for finding qualified parents, which is almost always time-consuming. This is because background checks need to be done, you and other witnesses will need to be interviewed, and other documentation demonstrating your fitness to be a parent will need to be provided.
Our attorney can help you obtain the documentation you need and counsel you on how to proceed with your adoption. This includes gathering financial records and preparing them to show that you have the means to provide for a child.
Our Family Lawyer in Aurora, CO Can Help You Today
Call YouLaw Colorado at (720) 815-4421 for a free case assessment with a family lawyer who will understand your legal needs.