Alimony is a major factor in any divorce settlement. Nothing can make a divorce get bitter and become contested more quickly, other than child custody issues, than determining alimony. Sometimes, though, an alimony agreement becomes outdated and needs to be updated due to life circumstances. A competent men’s divorce lawyer in San Antonio, Texas will be able to get you as fair an alimony modification as you deserve; here’s how you can help them help you.
What The Court Will Look At
The court will look at the status and income position of the husband, the needs of the wife, and the status and income position of the wife to determine, dependent on who deserves alimony, a reasonable figure as part of the settlement. Your divorce lawyer in San Antonio, Texas has one job: Make that figure reasonable for you even if you’re negotiating the alimony after the divorce decree has been issued.
Tips For Helping Your Lawyer
Be Cordial
The divorce is stressful enough, even if it’s uncontested. You and your partner have invested a lot to make it work and those efforts have failed. That, though, is why being cordial is so important. Approaching a negotiation from a position of hostility will guarantee the other side will become hostile. Hostile negotiations almost never go the way you thought they would. You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.
Avoid Ultimatums and Deadlines
If you’re like 99.99 percent of the rest of humanity, an ultimatum or deadline is a challenge. Your entire approach changes if challenged. Ultimatums and deadlines ensure exactly one thing: The other side will issue their own challenges. Even if you and the other party in agreement have hired an uncontested divorce lawyer San Antonio, Texas, do not insist on any deadlines; let them set the schedule.
Avoid Getting Personal
You also likely know all the buttons to push to really hurt the other person, whether you realize it or not. Nothing, though, can make a settlement negotiation get hostile than one or the other party getting personal. Avoid this and if they get personal, do not take the bait.
Do Not Get Angry at a Proposal
Your divorce attorney in San Antonio, Texas will be striving to get the best deal possible for you. If, though, you are looking for a modification, your ex-spouse will likely be opposed to it. That means any settlement proposals will come in too high as part of a negotiation tactic. When you get something like that, keep your cool.
No matter how well positioned you are, court cases and negotiations can go south quickly and often over nothing at all of consequence. You have to follow these basic rules to make sure the settlement negotiation goes in your favor. By hiring a men’s divorce lawyer in San Antonio, Texas, and by following these rules, you give yourself the best change possible to succeed.