Legal Question in Family Law in Washington
Divorce
My spouse and i have been seperated since January 05 I want a divorce and he doesn't. I wanted to file unreconsilible differences and for joint custody of our kids. I do not want anything from him. he is diabled and needs all the hwlp he can get. I am low income and i can't afford a divorce. I was curious to know if there is anyone out there that does charity cases. If so i could use the help. Where do i go and what do i do?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Divorce
I don't do charity cases. I do however on ocassion accept legally tradeable goods and services in partial payment of my fee, I also do payment plans. Another possibility is to approach one of the legal assistance organizations: If you are a low-income person living outside of King County and would like to obtain legal help on a civil (not criminal) legal problem, you may call the Northwest Justice Project's Coordinated Legal Education, Advice and Referral Line. The toll-free phone number is 1-888-201-1014. The third possibility is that you do it yourself. Divorce in Washington is form driven and simple divorces can be done by literate non-professionals. You just have to follow the rules. The forms can be found at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/forms/
Court rules (including links to local court rules) may be found at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/
You should review the Snohomish County Local Court Rules.
You may also want to review the Revised Code of Washington that applies to Domestic Relations:
http://www.leg.wa.gov/rcw/index.cfm?fuseaction=title&title=26
Keep in mind that all rules and statutes are subject to interpretation by courts, and may have a meaning (based on interpretation) that doesn't conform exactly with what they may appear to say. I don't have a readily available (and useful) reference for free access to case law.