Overly Aggressive Divorce Attorneys
One Problem That Divorce Attorneys Deal With Is Dealing With Opposing Attorneys Who Are Overly Aggressive “Pit bull” Types
Everyone has heard the stories about overly aggressive divorce attorneys. Whether it is on television, word of mouth from friends, or from personal experience most people equate divorce attorneys with unreasonable or with a “pit bull” approach to litigation. While the truth is that the majority of attorneys practicing divorce law are reasonable professionals who are happy to work toward peaceful settlements to their client’s cases, there are a few practitioners out there who affect the reputation of everyone in the industry.
What many people do not realize is that not all highly aggressive divorce lawyers are mean spirited litigators, but rather they tend to adopt the attitude and persona of their clients in each individual case. To test this theory do the following: if you come across a “pit bull” divorce practitioner take a look behind them at the client that they are representing in that particular case. More often than not you will see that same type of attitude in them and it is actually the lawyer who is following the client’s lead.
One unfortunate result of the angry approach to divorce litigation is that it significantly reduces the chances that the case will be able to settle amicably at medications or other types of settlement conferences. What this means is that the divorce case can go further in the litigation process to trial and can cost substantially more than the representation may have cost had the parties been able to settle at mediation.
A few years ago the Florida Bar, who is the licensing authority for attorneys, recognized the need to reduce the conflict and disrespectful treatment that lawyers were experiencing at the hands of their fellow lawyers. The result was an amendment to the official oath of attorney that added specific language that the lawyer will treat other legal professionals with civility and professionalism. It is reasonable to assume that no other area of practice had more attorneys needing to adhere to this new oath that that of divorce litigation.
One of the best ways that lawyers can reduce the expectation of their clients for overly aggressive representation is for the lawyer to communicate with their client from the beginning about how the divorce process can be far less traumatic and expensive if a more diplomatic but firm approach is taken to the litigation rather than one that stirs up conflict. Additionally, divorce judges have a deep appreciation for divorce clients and attorneys who conduct themselves with dignity and professionalism.
If you are considering hiring an attorney for your divorce case then call Sean Smallwood, P.A. at 407-574-6155 and ask about our available payment plans.
Sean Smallwood is an Orlando divorce attorney for the law firm Sean Smallwood, Orlando Divorce & Family Law P.A. where he represents clients in all areas of family law and divorce. 100% of the practice is devoted to family law. As an attorney in Orlando, he has helped many families with a wide variety of family law cases including Divorce, Child Custody, Child Support, and many other issues.
