Guest post by Camille Norest. (Editor’s Note:  Across the pond they use solicitors but the advice applies to choosing a divorce lawyer here as well.)

When going through a divorce, it is important to have a divorce solicitor that you are comfortable and confident with to take you through the process. To do this, you need to find the divorce solicitor with the right set of skills for your situation. This will help you save time, money and stress when you need it most. Here are 5 helpful tips to finding your perfect divorce solicitor.

Budget

Like everything in life, hiring a divorce solicitor has a price, so it is good to find one that you can afford. That is not to say you need to take on the cheapest divorce solicitor out there, but you should ensure that you are getting the best work for your money. Compare rates along with the other important features for your choice of divorce solicitor to see what price makes more sense to you. Most solicitors will charge by the hour instead of agreeing to a flat fee, although it is worth asking if your case can be covered with a flat fee for simplicity’s sake.

Specialists

Every divorce is different, but some a more individual than others. Assess the aspects of your relationship breakdown to see what might complicate things with the proceeding divorce. This could include children, pre-nuptial agreements and your specific reasons for divorce. When you have done this, search for a divorce solicitor that specialises in those areas. They will have experience with any problems regarding your circumstances and will be able to clearly explain anything you will need to do to continue with the process.

Talk to Them

Being confident with your divorce solicitor is vital, and this reassurance can be as easy as picking up the phone to ask a couple questions. Inquiries are free more often than not, and any divorce solicitor worth your time should happily talk you through some of the procedures when asked. Don’t expect an hour long conversation spanning every detail, they are in high demand and very busy, but talking personally to a divorce solicitor is a great, quick way to see if they are right for you.

Experience

Look for a divorce solicitor that has a decent amount of experience. Though for some it may be enough for to read when the company was started, it is also important to find out what they have been doing all that time. If a divorce solicitor has been involved in any cases that well known within the industry, they will call attention to it on their website, so it is a good idea to research deeper than a homepage when picking who is best for you.

Friends and Family

While you may not want to bring your friends and family in to your relationship breakdown, in some cases it might be preferable to keep them separate, but asking them if they would recommend a divorce solicitor is sometimes very helpful. No one knows you like your friends and family, so they could be able and willing to give you good advice on choosing who to talk to for your situation. You don’t need to tell them all the details, but if they have been through a relationship breakdown and they liked who helped them with the proceedings, it is worth seeing if they would be right for you too.