How to Have a Simple Divorce in Colorado

The two things anyone getting divorced wants to know are: 1) how long will this take and 2) how much is this going to cost?  The answer is simple:  depends on you.  You and your soon-to-be ex can decide how long you want this to take and how expensive you want it to get.  I'll break it down for you:

You can get divorced one of two ways:  go in front of a judge or settle.  People who are able to come to agreements on custody and finances settle.  Those who can't agree on everything go in front of a judge who decides that issue for them.  It takes time to get before a judge because their schedules are busy.  Also, hearing dates can get pushed back further if one side wants to engage in formal discovery (a process where you may be required to produce three years' worth of bank statements and other financial documents).  The process can get expensive, depending on who your attorney is and what information you're trying to get.

A little secret for you:  lawyers make most of their money going to trial because it's a lot of preparation time and time out of the office to bill you for.  There are lawyers out there who will encourage you to fight over things just to keep you from settling so they can make more money from you.  In a divorce, everyone loses but the lawyers.

The solution to a simple divorce is this:  Settle.  Don't fight over small stuff.  Go to mediation and be willing to compromise.

I am a mediator with a terrific track record for settlements, even with the most difficult people.  I can give you all the forms you need to file for divorce.  I can help you and your soon-to-be ex reach agreements on everything.  We will do the mediation with you two in separate rooms in order to keep emotions down.  And I can do it for a lot less money than either of you will pay for lawyers to fight it out and go to trial.  You could have everything done in a matter of days or weeks, as compared to nearly a year if you go the traditional route of hiring lawyers.