My husband asked for a divorce a couple of months ago. He didn't even want to go to counseling, instead he took me to get mediation. I wanted to fight for our marriage, so then he got mad because I didn't want to get divorced. So he filed to get full custody. He told me that he was going to take my son away from me. I have an attorney who told me that I need to pay him an additional $7,000 on top of the $2,500 I paid him less than a month ago. He told me that we need to go to trial. I feel that I am not being represented well. Can anyone tell me if this is true?
Yes, you need to go to trial if there is no agreement regarding custody. If you're not satisfied with your attorney, then you can and probably should seek new counsel.
If you and your husband cannot agree on the details of your divorce, or custody and visitation matters of your son, then it is possible that the matter would go to trial. There are a number of steps leading up to a trial, mediation being one of those steps. In the end, it is often better to settle the matter via mediation rather than risk a trial, but without more details about your specific situation, it is impossible to advise you more completely in this limited on line forum. However, if after speaking with your attorney, you don't feel comfortable with the representation being provided, you should consider seeking other representation. Many attorneys do offer an initial no cost, or low cost consultation o such matter.
You have an attonrery. Custody battles are expensive so it is not unusual that your lawyer would ask for additional retainer. There is nothing that you have mentioned here that sounds the least bit out of line, especially if you are required to go to trial. If you are not happy with your lawyer, get a second opinion before making such a rash decision to fire your lawyer.
Also - There is no such thing as full custody. There is sole custody and there is joint custody. The only difference is whether one or both parents participate in major decision making about health care, religion and education for the child(ren).
Finally - Your husband did not make you go to mediation. Mediation is required under the Supreme Court Rules when custody is at issue.
tuart Allan ReidDivorce / Separation LawyerDeerfield, IL ·
There are a number of steps that are generally required before a custody trial will actually take place. The first of these is usually mediation. In the event that mediation is unsuccessful, then the court may order the two of you to pay for a custody evaluation form a private evaluator, who is often on a list of approved evaluators for that county. The court will often rely heavily on the result of that evaluation. In other cases, the court may appoint a Guardian Ad Litem or an attorney for the children before permitting a custody trial to go forward. The court will give the two of you plenty of "off ramps" to resolve the custody / parenting dispute without going to trial. If none of those are successful, then you may end up in that small percentage of cases that go to trial. If that happens, the fees will be VERY substantial for each of you. Nothing your attorney has said seems off to me, but it is important that you have a good working relationship with your attorney. You can always seek a 2nd opinion, usually as a free consultation if you don't feel you are working with the right attorney.
