Entrepreneurial Ways of Filing Divorce Papers
The online entrepreneurs find a way of offering every type of service, and providing ways of filing divorce papers without the help of a lawyer was bound to become one of those services eventually. There does seem to be a need for it, as legal fees and the cost of divorce and property settlements have been rising steadily, and people with little money to spare often have no choice but to try to represent themselves.
In 2008, the Supreme Judicial Court Steering Committee on Self-Represented Litigants, from Massachusetts, published a report relating to people filing divorce and other papers themselves. It worried that this trend was especially troublesome for family matters and divorce. Some worry was slightly mitigated, though, by the fact that many court departments had already established programs to help these people find the divorce information and forms they needed, and to help them fill them out properly. So even apart from the internet, there have been moves to assist people representing themselves.
But much of the response of courts and publishers came after the trend toward getting a divorce without an attorney was well underway. It was helped along by websites that sprang up and took advantage of the growth of the internet. Sites like www.legalzoom.com, www.helpyourselfdivorce.com, and www.publiclegalforms.com have told people that they can file divorce documents on their own, and people have purchased downloads and kits in growing numbers. And not everyone trying this method is poor; many lawyers have noticed wealthier people also representing themselves, either trying to save money or push "sweetheart deals" through that no lawyer would agree to.
Filing divorce papers is easier since the entrepreneurs began providing internet forms, though not always easier for court officials. However, rather than trying to quash the do-it-yourself process and force people to use divorce lawyers, many courts have set up programs to help people handle divorces with as much ease as possible. The Wisconsin Court System, for example, has a website describing what sort of help their staff is legally allowed to give, and what they can't do. The internet has made a big difference in people's ability to deal with divorce, and the ability of the court to deal with them.
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