New Orleans Uncontested Divorce Attorneys

Learn What You Need to Know About Uncontested Divorces From a New Orleans Divorce Lawyer

Almost everything in life changes when a couple decides to divorce. That’s why having a compassionate and knowledgeable family law attorney on your side can make a world of difference as you make important decisions about your future.

New Orleans Divorce Lawyer Camille Patti is here to help as she combines her legal knowledge and experience with her personal care and concern for her clients. Find out what you need to know to receive help with your uncontested divorce.

What Is An Uncontested Divorce?

Divorces aren’t always long, expensive court battles. In some cases, both parties can agree on all the issues. These are called uncontested divorces and can save both parties time and money.

Uncontested divorces are usually quicker and less stressful because the spouses make their own decisions instead of leaving those decisions to a judge. This often leads to more satisfying outcomes for everyone involved.

Uncontested Divorce Benefits

There are many benefits to uncontested divorces, and almost all of them have to do with their simplicity. Here are some of the greatest benefits to an uncontested divorce:

• Uncontested divorces cost far less

This is because there is far less time and effort required of a divorce attorney to facilitate them. Rather than paying attorneys to negotiate every detail, file motions, and appear in court multiple times, an uncontested divorce allows you to pay a flat fee that’s far less expensive.

• Uncontested divorces often produce better outcomes

An uncontested divorce allows you and your spouse to work together calmly to find the best solution. People who go to court often feel dissatisfied because they have to follow the judge’s decision on matters instead of being able to make their own choices.

However, uncontested divorces allow you and your spouse to make the decisions yourselves and come to an agreement on matters together.

• Uncontested divorces are much faster

If a couple can’t agree on matters, then they will have to rely on a complex legal system to resolve matters for them. This includes multiple court appearances where a judge decides issues such as child custody, spousal support, and property/debt division.

But because everything is agreed upon first with an uncontested divorce, there are no drawn-out court battles to deal with. In fact, neither party may have to appear in court.

• Uncontested divorces are more private

When a divorce is argued in a judicial proceeding in Louisiana, divorce records are considered public documents under Louisiana Revised Statute 44, meaning that all of your most intimate details and allegations against each other are a matter of public record, accessible to anyone to view.

This contrasts with how an uncontested divorce is handled. Since the details of property division, support, and custody are negotiated privately, uncontested filings contain only the legally required details.

How Uncontested Divorces Work in Louisiana

When a couple agrees on all issues and accepts a divorce petition, an attorney can file the petition for divorce for one party. However, Louisiana requires a separation period before finalizing the divorce. Here are some situations to consider regarding these separation periods:

• If there are minor children, you must live separately and apart without reconciliation for 365 days.
• If no minor children exist, you must live separately and apart for 180 days without reconciliation.
• You can file for divorce before or after separation, but the divorce cannot be finalized until you have been separated for the requisite amount of time.
• Filing after you have already been separated results in a more streamlined legal process. Filing before separation gives you and your ex time to work out the legal details before finalizing your divorce.

If you need assistance with your uncontested divorce, let New Orleans Uncontested Divorce Attorney Camille Patti & Associates help you through the process.

Our Uncontested Divorce Process

Our New Orleans uncontested divorce attorneys want to make the process as simple and straightforward as possible for you, while still meeting all of Louisiana’s legal requirements.

Here’s what you can expect:

1. Information Gathering and Drafting
Once you have signed the representation agreement and paid your flat fee in full, Camille Patti & Associates is officially retained.
We will send you an intake form that allows us to gather all of the necessary information for your petition.
From there, we will draft your petition for you, then send it to you for your review and approval.
Once the draft of your petition has been approved, you will execute a verification of your petition attesting that all of the facts are true and correct. You can come in person to do this or schedule a remote notarization session.

2. Filing
Once you verify your petition, it is ready to be filed in court. We will arrange to file your petition for you.

3. Service
Before you can finalize your divorce, you must serve your spouse with your petition. There are a number of ways to do this:

• Waiver of service (simplest option) – If your spouse is willing to cooperate, they may choose to waive formal service. In this case, they will sign a waiver in front of a notary public confirming that they received the petition. They can also choose to waive legal delays. If they do so and the required separation period has already been met, you may proceed to finalize the divorce two days after the waiver is filed with the court.
• Service through the sheriff (in-state service) – If your spouse does not waive service, you may have them served through the sheriff. Once service is completed, you must wait 21 days. If your spouse does not file an answer within that time, you may move forward with finalizing the divorce.
• Long-arm service (out-of-state service) – If your spouse lives out of state, service may be completed through long-arm service. After the affidavit of service is filed into the court record, you must wait 30 days before you can proceed to finalize the divorce.
• If your spouse cannot be located – If you are unable to locate your spouse and therefore cannot serve them, the court may appoint an attorney to represent their interests. This attorney is called a curator, and you are responsible for paying their fees and expenses, adding an additional $350 to your flat fee.

4. Finalizing Your Uncontested Divorce
After the applicable time delays, you can file a motion for default divorce with an affidavit testifying to the facts necessary to obtain your divorce. The judgment is usually signed by the judge and returned in about a week, although times vary.

Dividing Property During an Uncontested Divorce

Our uncontested divorce attorneys can help keep the process moving, even when property division needs to be addressed.

In Louisiana, everything acquired during the marriage is generally considered community property, and is thus divided 50/50. This includes almost all assets and debts acquired by either spouse from their marriage until the date the divorce or legal separation is filed.

This normally includes:

• Income and Wages – Any money earned by either spouse during the marriage
• Real Estate and Vehicles – Homes, land, and cars purchased while married, even if the purchase was made with only one spouse’s income and titled in a single name
• Debt – Joint debts, credit cards, or loans accrued by either spouse while married
• Retirement/Pensions – Any contributions, pensions, or retirement funds built up during the marriage
• Jointly Donated Property – Gifts made to both spouses together.
• Business Interests – Equity or profit in a business built up or acquired during the marriage

If you and your spouse can come to an agreement of how to divide your community assets and liabilities, you can save thousands of dollars in legal fees over arguing about it in court.

New Orleans Uncontested Divorce Attorney Camille Patti & Associates can provide the legal expertise to make your agreements legally binding and ready to be completed by you and your spouse, allowing you to peacefully divide your community property.

Legal Help When Children Are Involved

Even though divorces almost always become more complex when children are involved, many divorcing couples are still able to come to agreements regarding how to co-parent their children going forward, either on their own or through mediation. Our attorneys can draft those agreements to make them legally binding while helping you avoid common pitfalls.

And because child support often goes hand in hand with a custody agreement, our firm can provide important information about calculations of child support under the Louisiana Child Support Guidelines.

Electronically Filing an Uncontested Divorce

Our attorneys can now provide even quicker uncontested divorces in New Orleans and surrounding parishes, thanks to electronic filing options provided by the Orleans Civil District Court.

As a result, documents can be filed instantly online, and judges can sign orders electronically as well. This makes uncontested divorces even easier, faster, and more convenient for you.

Why Uncontested Divorces in New Orleans Should Still Involve a Lawyer

While self-help forms for uncontested divorces are available, many people using these forms still fall into pitfalls due to nuances in the law. For example, district court rules for divorce proceedings vary from one parish to another, often making generic divorce approaches invalid.

Camille Patti & Associates have the necessary knowledge to skillfully and smoothly guide you through every step of the process thanks to years of experience in district courts across Southeast Louisiana.

For a reasonable flat rate, Camille Patti & Associates will guide you through the court process and help you finalize your divorce as smoothly and efficiently as possible.

Uncontested Divorce Flat Rate Packages

To make things as easy and affordable as possible, New Orleans Divorce Attorney Camille Patti offers quality legal services with transparent flat-fee pricing for those seeking an uncontested divorce in New Orleans.