3 Fears New Clients Have and How We Address Them
If you look around this Halloween, odds are you won’t see many people dressed up as lawyers. Kids usually choose classic monsters like vampires, ghosts, and werewolves for their costumes. But ask an adult and I bet they’d tell you that lawyers are scary — or at least intimidating.
This seems to be doubly true for divorce attorneys, probably because divorce itself can seem like a scary process. However, our team works hard to take those fears away and make getting to what we call a “happily ever after divorce” as easy as possible. Doing that means addressing some common fears, including the three below.
Fear No. 1: Consulting with an attorney will automatically start the divorce process.
This is a common concern, but it’s completely untrue in our office. When a new client comes to us, we always assume they haven’t made a decision yet about whether they’d like a divorce. Our job during the free consultation is to walk you through your options. We never spend our time trying to convince you to take one path or the other; we simply ask questions that will help you decide for yourself. By asking where you’d like to be in one year, five years, or 10, we can figure out what you need, whether it’s individual therapy, group therapy (which we offer for free), a conversation with your spouse to work things out, or a divorce.
Fear No. 2: Getting a divorce means being disloyal to my family.
Emotionally, this is the biggest fear I see our clients wrestling with, and I’m sure it holds hundreds of people back from making that first phone call to a divorce attorney. Most people blame financial difficulties, time constraints, or their circumstances for their hesitation to reach out about a divorce, but this fear is often the real root of the problem.
It’s understandable that considering divorce might feel like failing as a spouse, mother, father, or grandparent, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Sometimes, seeking out the opinion of a divorce attorney can help save your marriage. Other times, it may result in a divorce, but one that will be better for your family in the long run. The latter is our mission with every case that does go forward to divorce proceedings. We believe that a divorce doesn’t have to be a process that leaves you feeling guilty or ashamed. Like a balanced diet can be a good change physically, a divorce can be a good change mentally. We do everything we can to make sure every client leaves our office with a clear conscience.
Fear No. 3: Seeking a divorce attorney means diving into the unknown.
If you’re not a lawyer yourself, the process of getting a divorce or even consulting an attorney can feel like stepping off a cliff. To counteract that fear, my team and I strive to be as transparent with our clients as possible. Before we set anything in motion, we’ll discuss your options and the process so you know exactly what to expect.
If you’re getting this newsletter, you’ve likely already been brave enough to start the process of consulting us. However, you might have a family member or friend who is still letting fear and shame hold them back from doing what’s best for their future. If that sounds familiar, please pass this article on to them! We’d love to help them through the process of figuring out a plan and finding their happily ever after, whatever it might look like.
