IF YOU CANNOT AFFORD A
LAWYER TO REPRESENT YOU
Many men cannot afford to hire a lawyer to represent them, and so they have to represent themselves. There are resources out there to help you!
Here are some resources on the web for do-it-yourselfers:
In Washington, you must use standard forms in family law litigation; you can download them at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/forms/index.cfm
Calculate your child support and print all related forms:
DSHS forms related to child support:
If you want to play the game, you have to know the rules.
There are two kinds of rules: state-wide rules (such as the rules of evidence and the rules of civil procedure) and the local rules for your county.
The state-wide rules are at:
In Snohomish County, you can confirm your hearings on the court's website.
The Northwest Justice Project has a great self-help website; click on "family law" at:
http://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/WA/index.cfm
The domestic relations statutes (26 RCW), posted by the State legislature, are online at:
The Snohomish County Bar Association has a lawyer referral service at:
http://www.snobar.org/referral.htmThe King County Bar Association sponsors several programs providing free or low cost help for family law litigants; see all the links at:http://www.kcba.org/legalhelp/legalasst.aspxThere are two law schools in Seattle that often sponsor free legal help programs; call them for more information. (the University of Washington School of Law, information: 206-685-9002, and the Seattle University School of Law: 206-398-4000).
There are helpers at the courthouses called Family Law Facilitators; you should call ahead to make an appointment. There may be a small charge for their help. In King County, call: 206-296-9092 (Seattle) or 206-205-2526 (Kent).
There are two courthouses for the King County Superior Court; with a few exceptions, if you live South of I-90, your case should be filed at the Maleng Justice Center (formerly known as the Regional Justice Center) in Kent, and if you live North of I-90, the King County Courthouse in downtown in Seattle is where you file.
For the Snohomish County Family Law Facilitators, see: http://www1.co.snohomish.wa.us/Departments/Clerk/Services/Family_Law_Facilitator.htm
if you are low income, ask the facilitator about proceeding in forma pauperis, so you won't have to pay any court fees. Be sure to add this to the proposed order allowing you to proceed in forma pauperis:
"The Clerk of the Court shall wihout any charge make two certified copies of every document in this case file for [ your name ].
"The Sheriff of [ your county ] shall without any charge serve process for [ your name ] in this case within [ your county ] and shall file proof of service with the Clerk."
if you represent yourself:
Visit your courthouse; watch some hearings like yours, learn what to do.
Ask the courthouse staff for advice; they know the real rules.
Find out who the best family law attorneys are in your town and pay them for consultations about how to represent yourself; this will be money well spent and also the lawyers will now be unable to represent your wife because that would be a conflict of interest.
How do you know who the good lawyers are?
Lawyers have to go back to school in order to keep their licenses; this is called CLE (Continuing Legal Education). The lawyers who do the teaching at the CLE's are the experts in their fields. Check at your county courthouse's law library for CLE materials, and don't be shy about asking lawyers "have you ever been a CLE speaker? When, where, and what did you talk about?"
The most important things to remember:
1.) Facts win cases, lawyers don't win cases. Be sure to tell the facts to the court in typed documents that are as clear, complete, and to-the-point as possible.
2.) Prove the facts with written documents submitted to the court (called declarations). The standard forms link above includes declaration forms.
3.) Your documents must be served on the other side, filed with the Clerk of the Court, and delivered to your county's family law calendar -- all by the deadlines set by the local rules. Get and keep proofs of service.
4.) Don't try to submit late documents; the judge/commissioner won't read them. Know and obey the deadlines in your local rules.
5.) Always tell the truth! Credibility is very important in family law cases; you will hurt your case badly if you lie about anything; don't do it.
6.) Dress well for court. Be there on time. Listen carefully. Take notes. Stick to the big issues; don't get hung up on irrelevant little details. Stay calm and respectful at all times. When you speak, get to the point immediately and don't waste time. When the judge/commissioner starts talking, you stop talking and listen carefully. If you're asked a question, answer it; you can go on to explain if you're allowed, but don't start with your explanation.
7.) If you're not happy with a decision by a commissioner, you have the right to have the hearing done over, this time by a real judge. You must file a Motion for Revision; ask the family law facilitator for a form and instructions. If the hearing was recorded, you will probably have to pay for a copy of that record and deliver it to the revision judge. There are strict deadlines for doing all this, or you lose your right of revision. You cannot submit any new evidence for the revision hearing; the judge can only read what the commissioner read, but you can make new arguments and you will usually have a lot more time than you did at the commissioner level.
8.) Confused about where to make a motion? Go to Ex Parte -- they will either sign your paper or tell you where to take it; the Clerk's office can also tell you where you go for signatures.
9.) Judges have very broad discretion in family law cases. One of the reasons you should pay an experienced family law attorney for a consultation is because we know which judges are more likely to be good for you, and which ones aren't. You have the right to veto one judge off your case; this is known as the affidavit of prejudice. You can only use your "affidavit" once in a case and only BEFORE the judge has made a discretionary ruling; ask your lawyer for a form.
10.) Lawyers don't win trials; evidence wins trials. Ask your lawyer how to get the evidence you need, especially by interrogatories, requests for production of documents, requests for admission, depositions (video if you can afford it), and trial subpoenae.
11.) Expert witnesses can be very important. You might want to ask the court to appoint a Guardian ad Literm to represent the children. Some counties have volunteers called Court Apppointed Special Advocates who will investigate and report back to the court. Professionals who know your children can be great witnesses -- teachers, doctors, etc.
12.) If there is something wrong with Mom which is bad for your kids, such as drug addiction or alcoholism, ask HER mother to be your witness; tell her she needs to do this to protect her grandchildren, and so her daughter will get the help she needs.
. . . and this is very important . . . don't argue with the judge!
If you have visitation subject to supervision by a professional supervisor, here are three websites where you can find one (many off-duty or retired cops are willing to supervise as well; the going rate as of March 2010 for professional supervision in the Seattle area is about $40/hour):
http://www.familylawcasa.org/doc/community_visitation.html
http://www.svnetwork.net/chapterpage-roster.asp?chapID=23
http://www.svdirectory.com/state.htm?st=wa
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