QUESTION

What do we do if the attorney who handled my husband's first divorce did not take care of it?

Asked on Mar 04th, 2015 on Divorce - California
More details to this question:
Hi! My husband filed for divorce from his first marriage 5 years ago. Now that we are fixing papers, immigration needs the certificate of divorce, but the lawyer who filed the divorce did not send in the information that was required so now something that was suppose to be done 5 years ago is still in progress. Also, on the court papers it says that my husband did his case pro per. Shouldn't it say the name of the lawyer who filed the divorce?
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3 ANSWERS

Are you saying your husband never received a Judgment or decree of divorce before re-marrying? How is that possible? Didn't he have to have a copy of the Judgment to marry? If there is a Judgment, he just needs to get another copy of it from the courthouse where it was filed. If there was never a divorce finalized, he needs to complete it. Whether he was represented by an attorney or not depends on what he hired the attorney to do. He will need to look at his contract with the attorney to find out if it was supposed to be the attorney handling the case for him (and receiving all paperwork on his behalf) or whether the attorney was only hired and paid to do certain paperwork on your husband's behalf (so that his address was used and all paperwork went directly to him). Anything he signed would either have the attorney's name in the top left corner or would have his name, if he was representing himself.
Answered on Mar 05th, 2015 at 5:40 PM

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Personal Injury Law Attorney serving San Diego, CA at Law Office of Robert Burns
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A pro per case is a self-represented case, i.e., without an attorney. You should meet with the Family Law Facilitator for free assistance.
Answered on Mar 05th, 2015 at 2:48 PM

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Business Litigation Attorney serving Los Angeles, CA at Gerard A. Fierro & Associates
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Your husband may have made a special arrangement to file in his own name for a lower fee. The case file on his divorce case needs to be obtained. Depending upon what happened a motion to enter the Judgment retroactively may be able to be accomplished. If not that divorce case needs to be completed and then you may even need to be re-married to your current husband. An attorney can advise you in more detail.
Answered on Mar 05th, 2015 at 2:48 PM

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