How to Choose a Family Law Attorney That’s Right For You

One could argue that family law is at the heart of our communities. Its complex issues are intensely debated from the state legislature to social media and at our holiday dinner tables. Yet, no two family law cases are alike. 

Many clients face similar issues, but our family law attorneys look for what sets each matter apart without making assumptions. You need a Colorado family law attorney who understands this. But with over 900 attorneys practicing family law in Colorado alone, how are you supposed to know which one is right for you?

I’ve outlined some characteristics to help you identify the best Colorado family law attorney for your legal needs.

Before Getting Started: Understand Your Legal Needs

When choosing a family law attorney, you must first understand your legal needs. In rare instances, you may not need legal representation. Most of the time, however, a family law attorney is crucial to ensuring a favorable outcome. So,  how do you know if you need one?

If your problem involves one or more of the following family law issues, you need a family law attorney:

• Marriage

• Divorce

• Separation

• Annulment

• Domestic protection orders

• Property division

• Post-decree modifications

• Child custody

• Visitation

• Child support

• Grandparent’s rights

• Adoption

• Alimony

Often, one family law issue becomes another, which can be overwhelming as you search for the right lawyer – especially if you haven’t anticipated all the legal issues that could surface as your case proceeds. 

It can be tempting to pick the first family law attorney you find on Google, but I strongly urge you to refrain from doing this. Even a lawyer with a sterling reputation can be the wrong fit to handle your case.

Expertise is a culmination of knowledge and practice over time. Not all family law attorneys share the same expertise. Many have varying degrees of experience across different sub-areas of family law. Finding a Colorado family law attorney with the right combination of expertise will be invaluable in helping you obtain a positive outcome. 

Why Expertise Matters: The depth of knowledge a veteran attorney brings to mediation or the courtroom can level the playing field in a contentious family law case. 

Considering expertise can help you narrow your search. Take a look at our team page to learn more about our family law attorneys, including how many years of experience they have and what specialties they hold.

Anyone taking your money should have strong principles. A lawyer with integrity is morally sound and objective about your case’s strengths and weaknesses. An ethical Colorado family law attorney will set reasonable expectations for your case outcome while striving to deliver the best possible results. 

Why Integrity Matters: Clients with complex family law matters aren’t always at their best. They’re stressed and sometimes overcome with emotion. These clients need clear-eyed, calm, and consistent representation. 

I recommend looking for integrity in online reviews. Websites like Google or SuperLawyer can give you a sense of an attorney’s character ahead of time. You can find our attorney’s reviews by visiting Robinson & Henry’s team page. 

It’s also beneficial to clients that many of our family law attorneys are former prosecutors or district attorneys. This experience imbues them with an invaluable sense of right and wrong and instills a pragmatic, no-nonsense approach that’s particularly effective in emotional family law matters. 

Advocacy is the unwavering support for an individual or cause. When clients come to us for legal services, the people they consider their greatest advocates have often let them down. 

The Colorado family law attorney you entrust with your case should seek to understand your perspective of events to craft a compelling argument to get you the best possible outcome. 

Why Advocacy Matters: Family law matters can be difficult for all involved parties. An attorney who understands your goals and actively works to help you achieve them, especially when a routine matter evolves into an epic legal battle, is invaluable to a successful outcome.

Diligence is the persistent, focused effort to see something through. A family law attorney who is willing to go the distance with you by refusing to settle for less than you deserve isn’t as commonplace as one might think.

Why Diligence Matters: Sometimes, lawyers balk when presented with potential cases that, at first glance, seem overly cumbersome. These matters may require more effort, time, and expertise than an attorney can offer. You need counsel who will take your opposing party to trial if the circumstances and facts of the case warrant this level of deliberation.

Your family law attorney should take the time to meet with you, explain the process and what to expect, and answer any questions you may have. 

Why Accessibility Matters: When you’re in the middle of an emotional family law matter, you should feel represented. Our clients get face time with their attorneys. All good lawyers know they’re useless without the client’s participation.

Our family law attorneys pride themselves on being available to your needs. 

You know you’ve hired a great family law attorney when you feel comfortable working with them during a difficult time and confident they’ll do everything possible to move your case forward.

Why Credentials Matter: Attorneys must represent clients with the knowledge, skill, and judgment expected of legal professionals. This standard ensures competent representation and expert handling of legal matters. By looking into an attorney’s credentials, you know the person you’re hiring has the proper qualifications and ethical standards to guide you through the legal process.

Hiring an attorney with the appropriate credentials saves time and money. At Robinson & Henry, we showcase our success by allowing prospective clients to read about our most recent cases. 

When choosing a family law attorney, you want to work with someone who makes you feel at ease, possesses excellent communication skills, and can explain things to you cohesively. 

After meeting with a prospective attorney, ask yourself: 

• Do I like this lawyer?

• Would we work well together?

• Do I feel understood by this attorney?

• Did the attorney communicate effectively?

• Can this attorney meet my legal needs?

• Does this attorney show a demonstrated interest in meeting my needs?

• Does the attorney help me make sense of the law and how it relates to my case?

Many family law cases settle, so you may also consider whether your attorney has experience in litigation and not just settlements.

Cost is an important consideration when hiring a divorce attorney. But take it from me: Nothing is more expensive than a discount divorce lawyer. 

Hiring a lawyer based solely on their fees can result in negative consequences that can plague you for years, such as:

• Problematic child support or spousal maintenance payments

• Expensive attempts to modify unfavorable outcomes

• The emotional cost of living with an undesirable parenting time

Let’s explore the legal fees and costs associated with a family law matter. 

Factors That Affect Your Legal Fees

The Firm’s Location

Attorney’s fees vary from one law firm to another, and the firm’s location will influence your legal bill. Generally, attorneys cost more in metropolitan and suburban areas than in rural locations. Why? Operating firms in larger cities are usually pricier than in small towns. 

Case Complexity

Another factor affecting your legal bill is the nature of your case. The more challenging it is, the more expensive it will be. For instance, a contested divorce that ends up in court will cost more than one where the parties can come to a settlement at mediation. 

The Attorney’s Experience

A more seasoned attorney charges more than a less experienced attorney. However, this doesn’t mean you cannot receive strong representation if you’re on a budget. 

At larger firms, the most senior attorneys oversee junior attorneys. Junior attorneys will conduct much of the casework, while the senior attorneys strategize and handle the complexities of a case. Attorney collaboration like this can save clients money.  

Attorney Fee Structures

Hourly Rate

The price point of an attorney’s hourly rate varies based on experience and location. Clients receive bills for the time their attorney spends on their cases. Billed time typically includes meetings, research, and court appearances. 

Flat Fee

At some law firms, attorneys charge a flat fee to cover services. Flat fee cases often involve creating documents, like a will. In general, family law clients will not pay a flat fee as their cases are usually more complex and protracted to justify a flat fee. A fee structure unavailable to Colorado family law clients is the contingency fee. With this fee structure, attorneys receive a percentage of the client’s recovery. Think of personal injury commercials that state, ‘We only get paid if you get paid.’ Colorado law generally prohibits contingency fees in cases where payment hinges on securing a divorce, the amount of maintenance or child support, or a property settlement in lieu of such amounts. 

Other Costs You May Incur

Consultation Fee

Many attorneys in family law practice charge a consultation fee to assess a case. Initial consultation fees assure attorneys that a prospective client is serious about taking their matter to court and protect the attorney from losing time they could spend attending to other cases. Much like an hourly rate, consultation fees vary widely. 

Retainer Fee

Attorneys often ask clients to pay a retainer fee to secure—or retain—their services for a case. The retainer money is placed into a trust account and withdrawn to pay for work completed on the case. 

Your firm may ask you to replenish your retainer as your case proceeds, especially if the matter goes to court.  The firm will return unused portions of your retainer fee when the case concludes. 

Additional Costs

You can also accrue other fees related to your case, such as expert witnesses, court filings, and mediation costs. 

Any law firm, regardless of size, is only as good as its partners and associates. There are advantages and disadvantages to hiring a small or large firm. Let’s take a closer look at some of them.

The American Bar Association considers any firm with 350 or more attorneys large. This figure considers national law firms with branches in multiple states, meaning a firm with 150 or more state-based attorneys would be among the largest in Colorado. 

Some of the benefits of hiring a large firm include:

• Efficiency: Larger firms can hire more paralegals, administrative assistants, and other staff to handle daily operations. 

• Reputation: Large firms have built an enviable track record, earning a strong reputation that enables them to attract the best. 

• Expertise: Large firms have teams of attorneys who can consult their colleagues on case strategy. These attorneys can often hone in on one practice area, gaining more expertise. 

Like most things, where there are advantages, there are also disadvantages. Some possible cons of hiring an attorney at a large firm:

• Inaccessibility: Lawyers from large firms without streamlined processes can lose track of your case in the shuffle. 

• Caseload: Some larger firms encourage attorneys to settle “routine” family law matters and move on, even when they could keep fighting for their clients.

Going with a family law attorney from a small firm can reap rewards, especially regarding the following:

• Accessibility: Attorneys at smaller firms often only have a handful of cases at any time, which gives them more time to devote to each case.

• Affordability: Smaller firms have lower overhead costs and can pass those savings on to their clients. 

There are two key disadvantages of small firm representation:

• Fewer resources: Smaller firms often have limited or no support staff, leaving them ill-equipped to take on bigger, more complex cases. 

• Multitasking: Fewer staff and resources means the attorneys take on operational tasks, such as accounting, marketing, client intake, and filing routine motions.

Family law matters can start small and become quite complex. An attorney might struggle to meet critical legal deadlines without support or adequate resources.

Yes, you will occasionally find the perfect fit for you. In this case, a “Goldilocks firm” has the prestige and resources of a larger firm and the expertise of a boutique firm. 

While no firm is perfect, some have emerged as thought leaders in maximizing all the advantages of growth while maintaining quality attorney-client relationships. Robinson & Henry is one of them.

We Take a Team-based Approach

Family law matters can overlap with other areas of law, such as estate planning, criminal defense, or business law. Our family law attorneys have tremendous resources as a full-service law firm that provides legal services in dozens of legal areas. When our family law attorneys need guidance on issues outside their wheelhouse, they can ask experienced colleagues for advice.

If you’re looking to reap all the benefits without any disadvantages, then Robinson & Henry’s team of family law lawyers in Colorado could be just right for satisfying your legal needs. 

Consider hiring a family law attorney who has handled cases in the county where your family law matter will be heard.  Doing so means the lawyer will have insight into the judges and magistrates who could hear your case, as well as the opposing counsel who could be representing the other party. 

A local attorney will also possess extensive knowledge of the various offices and agencies that may overlap with your case, such as child protective services and the clerk’s office. 

Robinson & Henry’s Colorado family law attorneys travel extensively for clients, giving them intimate knowledge of the state’s county courts. R&H also has various offices around Colorado to provide flexible options for in-person meetings. 

The initial interview will help you assess whether an attorney is a good fit for your specific case. During this consultation, the attorney will better understand your case and provide informed advice.

To prepare for this appointment, you should bring:

• A summary of your situation

• A chronological timeline of significant events 

• Pertinent communications, such as emails or texts

• Questions you want to ask

Your attorney will ultimately speak on your behalf as your case proceeds. Asking the right questions is vital in retaining the best attorney. You may already have a list of questions in mind, but here are some to help you get started:

• How much experience do you have working on cases like mine?

• What is your general approach to handling similar cases?

• What possible strategies could we pursue?

• Will I work with you directly, or will someone else manage my case?

• How will you stay in contact with me about my case?

• What do you think about the judge handling my case? (If your case is already assigned a judge.)

Remember: you are the person who chooses your attorney. When dealing with something as precious as your and your family’s life, you want to ensure you have the right attorney. Our attorneys understand this and are ready to answer your questions. 

When opting for a family law attorney, you will want to consider their availability. For example, an attorney with a large caseload likely can not give you the time and care your case deserves. Be sure the firm you are working with has enough time to take on your case. 

Make sure you understand the specifics of your attorney’s fee structures. Doing so will help the case proceed smoothly and save you from any surprise costs later. Consider asking: 

• What is your hourly rate?

• How do you bill for your services? 

• What payments are accepted?

Reading client reviews is one of the best ways to vet the firm you are interested in working with. In addition to a firm’s website, peruse client reviews on various rating platforms. Consider reading our case results, which are relevant to your situation. 

At the end of the day, you are the best person to decide what lawyer will suit your needs. Be honest with yourself. After examining all of the information provided to you and receiving answers to relevant questions, listen to your gut and trust that your instincts will make the right choice.

I hope this legal guide will serve as a resource as you determine the best Colorado family law attorney for your needs. If you feel ready to discuss your situation and explore your options, contact our team at (303) 688-0944 to schedule your case assessment.