Lawyer vs a pro see litigant

[Spaceman1982]

Thinking of maybe hiring a attorney. But it's really pricey. Do attorney's have more leverage in court? Can they not get in trouble for saying things you may. I have heard people say judges hate Pro Se litigants talking like attorneys cause they never went to law school.

[Simplydad]

An attorney will always be better in court because of the knowledge they posess.  Court is about knowledge and procedure.   If you do not know the proper procdeures you can make huge mistakes.   Judges do not cut pro se litigants any slack.  Any mistake you make is your fault.  You are responsible for knowing the law and how it applies in court.

Each court has Rules of Civil Procedures that must be adhered to in court.  If you do not follow these rules then you stand to lose big.  It governs what is required in court such as discovery rules.  Judges do not police if an attorney is following the rules or not.  It the responsibility of the opposite side to notice it and file the necessary motions to combat it.  If you do not know these rules you can't beat an attorney.

[gemini3]

I think a lawyer is always the better way to go.  Like the other poster said, they are familiar with process and procedure - and it's pretty complicated.  I know of others who have successfully represented themselves, but I would say they are out of the norm.

There are ways you can save money when using an attorney.  The biggest thing, in my opinion, is NOT to call them with every little thing.  Post here, or talk with other trusted friends before you call your attorney.  A lot of the time, the only thing they can do is listen to you and bill you $200+ bucks an hour for the priviledge.  A counselor is cheaper, you know?

Also, you can ask to courier any documents for them (most law firms will charge you around $80), offer to make copies, etc.  You can draw up your own parenting plan and have your attorney check it to make sure it complies with your state laws.  Things like that.

There is a great book called "Win Your Child Custody War"  (http://www.amazon.com/Your-Child-Custody-Book-How/dp/1587470845 (http://www.amazon.com/Your-Child-Custody-Book-How/dp/1587470845))  That has a lot of great information, and is a great way to check and see if something is a game changer (call your attorney) or not (don't call your attorney).  The book is pricey - but we found it to be well worth the price.

[ocean]

I agree, pay for ONE meeting, have a nice neat, binder, ready to hand over. Then hire them for the court date. Be prepared to pay for a few or more court dates. Ask the lawyer if it looks like judge going to postpone, can they do it right away, get a new date and he/she can leave. You can hire and fire the lawyer for each date so the other side can not call your lawyer and upped your bill with nonsense. The opposing side will deal with you until the court date.

[Spaceman1982]

good advice.  ty

I had a bad fall out with my judge and he threatened to remove custody from me.  Things have gotten worse and my ex even has a criminal warrant. has still yet to pay support in 2 years, and her ex roommate kicked em out due too drugs. Something needs to be done and the consensus is I tried to get actions (supervised visitations) done without an attorney and it looked like I wanted her gone. The couple attorneys said that tends to happen with judges in nevada cuz a pro se litigant wouldnt know when to apply supervised visits or not