Child Support Attorneys

By Jean M. Mahserjian, Esq.

Child support attorneys are generally matrimonial and family law attorneys. That is, they do not just practice law as child support attorneys. A child support issue can arise in an intact family, where everyone still resides in the same house, or in a situation where the parents reside in different houses and either are or are not involved in a divorce case. Under any of these particular circumstances, hiring child support attorneys who are experienced and adept at the intricacies of the child support law in your state is critical.

So, how do you find good child support attorneys? There are a number of methods that you can and should follow to find good child support attorneys. If you simply open the phone book and look up a name and number, you may get exactly what you deserve for using such inept methods.

The first method to be followed to find good child support attorneys is to obtain referrals from people who have actually had to litigate their own child support issues. If you have a friend who had a simple and easily negotiated case and your case is complicated, that friends child support attorney is not necessarily going to be good for your case. So, when looking for referrals for child support attorneys, find people who have had child support cases or issues similar to yours and then find out if their attorney was helpful. If they were, that referral will be helpful.

The second method is to actually go online and review websites to get information about child support attorneys. Not every attorney has a website, but many do and you can find out an awful lot about an attorney from their site. Also, do a Google search on attorneys who you think you might want to consult with. If that attorney has written articles, or if clients have posted information anywhere about that attorney, you will find it. Your investigative work will pay off with the end result of you being very informed about the child support attorneys who you might want to consult with.

The third method is to actually consult with two or three child support attorneys. Attorneys all are trained in the law, but there the similarities end. Different attorneys have different styles of interacting with clients and different abilities to communicate information. Do not hire a child support attorney that you are not comfortable speaking with. If you feel belittled or disrespected at the time of an initial consultation, that feeling is not likely to improve if you actually retain that attorney.

Child support attorneys have different office management techniques and you need to ask questions about how your case will be handled before you retain an attorney. Does this attorney return phone calls on a specific schedule? Some attorneys return all calls within 24 hours. You do not want an attorney who will not return your calls for several days. Does this attorney involve clients in decision making? Or is the attorney more likely to tell you what you that you should want what the law says you should get? Families are varied and complex and the specific laws of your state might not benefit your family. If that is the case, you need an attorney who will discuss those issues with you and not simply brush you off or ignore your requests and recommendations.

After you have used all three methods for finding good child support attorneys, retain one, but keep your list. It is not uncommon for litigants to decide after they have been involved with an attorney for awhile that they need a different fit for their case. Beware, however, when switching. It is commonly believed by attorneys and judges that anyone can need to switch attorneys once. But, a litigant who switches twice or three times or more will be viewed as difficult and antagonistic.