You Need a Lawyer!
Finding help during your Divorce
In her book,” Divorce 101, An introduction to the many aspects of Separation and Divorce in Canada”, author Linda Cartier dedicates a whole chapter to Myths. (Cartier, 2019, pgs. 17-19) She opens the chapter stating that there are many self -proclaimed experts that claim experience and wisdom in the area of separation and divorce. These “friends” are generally well meaning and genuine, however, because each couple is unique, it follows therefore, that each separation and divorce will also be special. It is prudent, therefore, to be careful with the counsel you engage because the expertise of “co-workers, buddies or family is a sure recipe for trouble.” (pg. 17)
Cartier goes on to say that all lawyers are not necessarily the “right fit” either. For many people, the only lawyer we may know are those who helped you with conveyancing your mortgage perhaps wrote up your will or got your rotten nephew out of jail due to an impaired charge. Financial planners or advisors may not be the right fit to help you either, as they may focus on investment portfolios, insurance, or employee benefits. Because separation and divorce are common, everyone will have heard some good and bad stories about the people in their communities, but these anecdotes cannot provide all the important details that need to be considered when people break up after years of sharing lives.
It is important to surround oneself with qualified professionals to help you when working through a separation and divorce and this includes having a qualified and experienced lawyer. In an ideal world, it would be great to have family law specialists available for everyone, but that is not the case. In rural areas, it is often difficult to find general lawyer, let alone a specialist to help you. In large cities, there may be specialists, but from my experience, many of them are not taking new clients. In many cases, it is not uncommon for generalist lawyers to not want to take on family law cases as they are often emotionally draining and are often not financially rewarding for them.
A New Service that Can Help!
It is for this reason that a new specialty in financial planning has come into being in Canada. The Chartered Financial Divorce Specialist (CFDS) can be an excellent resource to the individual or the couple that has decided to break up. The CFDS is totally dedicated to looking for ways to split the assets of the couple. The services of a Chartered Financial Divorce Specialist give the clients a clear picture of where they financially stand today and where they can be in the future. Having a clear understanding of the future value of a financial decision today will provide a lot of comfort in the future.
If you are in the process of separation and divorce, using a CFDS like myself can save you a lot of money and time because that work will help provide the framework to your separation and divorce agreement.
Check out my website at www.acdyck.com