You’ve Retained an Attorney, Are You Obligated to go to Court?

There are some instances in which you must to take immediate action, such as if a spouse refuses to pay support while the case is pending. In this case, it will be necessary to go to court and make a formal written application for temporary support called pendente lite support, which means “pending the litigation” support. In this application, you can request temporary child support, temporary spousal maintenance, and payment of expenses (i.e. mortgage, utilities).

In the instances that you don’t need to go to court immediately, perhaps because your spouse is threatening to transfer or liquidate assets, you can file a Summons and Complaint. A Summons and Complaint is where the action of divorce begins, and this can be filed at the county clerk’s office. The summons is then served to the spouse.

There are also automatic orders, which provide that neither party can liquidate, dissipate, or transfer assets unless it’s within the ordinary course of business or for attorney fees. If someone does move assets outside of these guidelines, they can be held in contempt and be incarcerated.

If a party isn’t threatening to liquidate assets and is paying the support that’s required of them, then it’s not necessary to go to court immediately. Typically, one spouse will have their attorney send the other spouse a First Letter, which notifies the spouse of the retainment of an attorney and the intent of divorce or other resolution of their marital issues. Once this occurs, the spouse who received the First Letter should also hire a divorce lawyer and contact their spouse’s attorney to set up dates to work through financial details and find an amicable resolution for the case.