• Can divorcing spouses both use the same lawyer?
• Can I obtain child support without filing for divorce?
• Do I have rights to a child’s custody if I was not married to the mother?
• Does my spouse need to consent to a divorce in Oklahoma City?

• If my spouse has property solely in his or her name, does that mean I won’t get a share in the property?
• Can divorcing spouses both use the same lawyer?

• My ex-spouse has had an increase in income. Can I get them to pay more in child support?
• Can I force my spouse to help pay for our child’s college costs?

General Questions

• Can divorcing spouses both use the same lawyer?

  No. An attorney may not represent two clients who are on opposite sides of the same court action as that creates a conflict of interest. If you and your spouse are not able to fully agree about things such as property and debt division or child custody and visitation, then you should each have your own lawyer from separate law firms. (You can, of course, represent yourself in court, but it's not highly recommended, especially if your spouse has hired their own attorney)

  If you and your spouse are 100% in agreement about EVERY term of your divorce agreement, then you may utilize just one attorney to help you with an uncontested or "waiver" divorce. In this instance, one of you will be the client and the other will be self-represented, or "pro se". The pro se party will sign a Waiver of Summons/Entry of Appearance that tells the court that they know the divorce papers have been filed, they don't want an attorney of their own, and they are okay with the terms of the decree their spouse will take to the court. The attorney for the other spouse will prepare all the documents necessary, have both parties sign them, and then go with their client to have them signed by the judge and entered as a Final Decree.

  Uncontested divorces handled this way are much faster and far less expensive than arguing in court and are a perfect choice for couples who have already agreed on how everything will be handled and just want a quick and streamlined court process. If you are interested in finding out if an uncontested divorce is right for you, please call us at (405) 792-2400 to schedule a consultation.

• Can I obtain child support without filing for divorce?

  Child support can be obtained without filing for divorce. You will need to speak with an experienced attorney.

• Do I have rights to a child’s custody if I was not married to the mother?

  To receive paternal rights, which would allow you to take custody of the child, you would need to first establish paternity. When a child is conceived during a marriage, the husband is assumed to be the father. Otherwise, paternity must be established by either by signing an acknowledgment of paternity or obtaining an order of filiation from the court before custody and visitation rights can be addressed.

• Does my spouse need to consent to a divorce in Oklahoma City?

  In short, no. When someone files for a divorce, the other spouse has a certain amount of time to respond. If the spouse does not respond in the given time frame, the court may grant a default divorce. If your spouse does respond, you can still file for divorce without consent. The no-fault divorce clause adopted by the State of Oklahoma in 2010 allows for this.

Divorce

• If my spouse has property solely in his or her name, does that mean I won’t get a share in the property?

  No. When couples get divorced, their property is divided into separate and marital property. Separate property is anything acquired before the marriage (with some exceptions). Marital property is any property or assets acquired after the marriage, regardless of whose name is on it. Anything considered marital property will be subject to equitable division by the court system. This means that if your spouse’s property was acquired after you were married, you may be entitled to receive a share.

  If you have other questions about your divorce and property settlement options, contact Naidu Law today to schedule a consultation with one of our attorneys!

• Can divorcing spouses both use the same lawyer?

  No. An attorney may not represent two clients who are on opposite sides of the same court action as that creates a conflict of interest. If you and your spouse are not able to fully agree about things such as property and debt division or child custody and visitation, then you should each have your own lawyer from separate law firms. (You can, of course, represent yourself in court, but it's not highly recommended, especially if your spouse has hired their own attorney)

  If you and your spouse are 100% in agreement about EVERY term of your divorce agreement, then you may utilize just one attorney to help you with an uncontested or "waiver" divorce. In this instance, one of you will be the client and the other will be self-represented, or "pro se". The pro se party will sign a Waiver of Summons/Entry of Appearance that tells the court that they know the divorce papers have been filed, they don't want an attorney of their own, and they are okay with the terms of the decree their spouse will take to the court. The attorney for the other spouse will prepare all the documents necessary, have both parties sign them, and then go with their client to have them signed by the judge and entered as a Final Decree.

  Uncontested divorces handled this way are much faster and far less expensive than arguing in court and are a perfect choice for couples who have already agreed on how everything will be handled and just want a quick and streamlined court process. If you are interested in finding out if an uncontested divorce is right for you, please call us at (405) 792-2400 to schedule a consultation.

Child Support

• My ex-spouse has had an increase in income. Can I get them to pay more in child support?

  Short answer? Yes.

  Longer answer? It depends - most of the time if an ex is making quite a bit more than they were when your original child support order was entered and there haven't been any significant changes to your income, then yes, a higher support amount is probably likely. However, the income of the parties is not the only factor that goes into calculating child support - things such as health insurance and child care costs, other children being supported, court-ordered marital debt payments, and the number of overnight visits that your ex gets with your child all play a role in calculating the final amount of child support to be paid.

  If you would like to have a detailed assessment of your child support matter, give Naidu Law a call at (405) 792-2400 to schedule a consultation.

• Can I force my spouse to help pay for our child’s college costs?

  Like most questions that come up in family law matters, the answer to this one is "it depends". Generally speaking, in Oklahoma, there is no default rule that a parent is required to pay for some or all of a child's college costs, and it's very rare that a court will order such a thing to be done unless there's a compelling reason to do so. This doesn't mean that it can't be worked into a divorce decree, though - it simply takes some negotiation skill on the part of the attorneys.

  Anything that a divorcing couple agrees to do after their divorce is finalized can be incorporated into an enforceable court Order in the final divorce decree - including an agreement for the parents to either share the college costs or for one person to pay the bulk of them. If you want this to be part of your decree and your ex won't agree to it, your attorney can ask the court to make a ruling on that issue at trial, as long as they file something specifically requesting it and they can make a legitimate argument as to why it needs to be part of the final decree. Things such as large income disparity, special needs of the child or children, and other factors may support a ruling that specifically addresses college costs. These factors are specific to each family and it is not an automatic given that the court will make a ruling in your favor if you are requesting that your ex be ordered to pay these costs.

  If you would like to have one of our attorneys evaluate your situation, please call us at (405) 792-2400 to schedule a consultation.