Dealing with a divorce can be quite confusing and stressful. Hiring a divorce lawyer to fight for your rights is an important decision that can afford you some time to grief and start the healing process.
But the big question is, which type of divorce attorney would you prefer to hire? Do you want an overly aggressive attorney (a pit bull) or a strategic attorney (poddle)?
In most cases, people who are faced with a divorce –especially if they are not the ones initiating it- feel angry and betrayed. Their first impulse is always to find a way of “destroying” their partners and “winning” the case.
However, it is crucial to understand that the initial desire to find the most aggressive divorce attorney is not a sign of strength but a manifestation of anger and deep fear.
The truth is that the role of a successful divorce lawyer not only includes being overly aggressive on behalf of his/her clients but also involves being reasonable and responsible. A good attorney will strive to provide you with the best advice based on research and experience.
In this post, we discuss some of the pros and cons of hiring an overly aggressive divorce attorney to represent you in your divorce case.
The Pros of Hiring Aggressive Divorce Attorneys
Protecting your interests and that of your children may sometimes require an aggressive lawyer who will leave nothing to chance. If you are going through a fiercely contested divorce, you need someone who will do everything possible to ensure you are getting what you truly deserve.
While some people may be afraid to hire an aggressive attorney, the dynamics of your case may require aggressive tactics if you are to get anything out of it. An experienced attorney can use aggressive tactics in a way that doesn’t create chaos to get you a better deal.
Good aggressive divorce attorneys use their knowledge and experience to get their clients a fair deal that could otherwise be impossible using conventional means.
You will find an aggressive lawyer to be important in your divorce case if your partner is railroading you. Some of the situations where an aggressive divorce attorney can be of help include:
- One partner is hiding marital assets from the other
- One partner is keeping secret bank accounts
- One party is purposely delaying the court proceedings
- One spouse is telling children awful stories to make the other spouse look bad
- One party is threatening the other with physical or financial harm if they don’t concede
Cons of Hiring an Aggressive Divorce Lawyer
In some other cases, hiring an overly aggressive divorce attorney can hurt your case. Indeed, such lawyers will stop at nothing until you get what you deserve. However, this type of conflict-driven litigation often leads to more problems than it is worth.
Here are some of the cons of hiring an aggressive divorce lawyer.
1. Many conflicts mean more court time
When divorcing parties insist on fighting almost every detail of their divorce in a court, the time needed to litigate the matter is prolonged. The more time you spent in court, the more money you spent, making the divorce process incredibly expensive.
Instead of wasting time in court battling on petty issues such as who gets to keep the family pets, such issues can be resolved quickly during the mediation process between the two of you and your attorneys.
2. More publicity
Fiercely contested cases often lead to greater publicity because they draw the attention of many people. This can be traumatic to you and your children.
One of the best things you can do when dealing with a divorce is shielding your children from unwarranted attention and your nasty tussles. With an overly aggressive attorney representing you, it becomes almost impossible to avoid publicity.
3. Greater conflict after divorce
At the end of a fiercely contested case, a judge will decide on the disputed issues. He/she will play a critical role in determining who gets what and the type of custody to award each parent.
However, in most divorce cases, the judge’s verdict is not always the final word.
Both parties may need to work out on certain aspects of child custody and agree on modalities. Unfortunately, this might not work out if you hired an aggressive attorney who tore into your spouse mercilessly.
