A divorce for under $2000!!!! I'm shocked!
A family member was in the process of wanting to file for divorce but didn't have a lot of money to spend. She had contacted several attorneys in the area and the retainer amounts they quoted ranged from $7,500-12,000. Like me, she is on the verge of retirement and spending over $10,000 was out of the question. Anyway, I saw a sign posted for Equal Access Legal Support as I got off the freeway at Porter Ranch Drive and decided to call them and see if their claim of "low cost" was actually true. To my surprise it was and I sent the information to my friend. They are a new business who is run by a family law attorney who wanted to come up with a way to help people who did not have the money for large retainers. The service works by signing up for one of their workshops (they are located in Chatsworth) where the attorney explains the process of divorce. They then give you all of the paperwork needed to file for divorce and you complete it with the help of the attorney and her staff. When you have completed everything, you sit down with the attorney or a paralegal and they review everything and answer any questions you have. When the paperwork has been reviewed, you sign everything and she makes the copies for you, organizes everything so you can go file it, and puts it in a folder with directions for the next steps. The quote she gave for this service was only $675!!! She also offers a Judgment clinic where she prepares your Judgment of divorce and then schedules you in to discuss it and review everything. That clinic is like $800.
She did stress that using her service, you remain self represented and she has each client sign a contract stating that they understand she does not represent you in the case, and that if the other party were to come in she would allow them to take the workshop as well. If you need an attorney to go to court with you she has a bunch that she has worked with in the area for years that she is happy to refer you to. Of course, she is bound by law to never disclose anything that you tell her and I think this is incredibly fair given how inexpensive the service is.
From what she said, if the other party doesn't respond, or even if they do and you are able to come to an agreement for property division and child custody (not an issue in my friends case) you could potentially be divorced for under $2000 and that includes the $435 filing fee you have to pay the court. Under $2000!!! Oh, and she is open for workshops nights and weekends so you don't have to take time off of work. I wish this service would have been around for me when I was going through my divorce and spending thousands and thousands of dollars. read more