This little tip may not be new to you.  In fact, some of you may using this without actually knowing it.  But there is a way to “lock in” the best divorce attorneys in town, without hiring a single one.  This works on the grounds of attorney-client privileges and conflict of interest.  But simply put, your wife cannot hire a divorce attorney that you have already spoken to about you case.

The idea is to schedule consultations with 5 or 6 of the best divorce attorneys in your area.  Many of these attorneys will offer free consultations as they try to sell themselves as the best person to represent you in your divorce case.  Others will charge a nominal fee (ie $50) and will probably go into more depth about your case.  But some of the most experienced divorce attorneys may actually charge you for an hour of their time ($150 – $250).  These types of consultations could possibly end up in some action taking place before the hour is even up, which was the case for me.  But no matter what happens during your meeting, it is establishes a relationship that makes it unethical for any of these divorce attorneys to even talk to your wife, let alone to represent them in your divorce.

So in essence, it is up to you as to how far you want to take this.  In a small town or city this can be a very powerful divorce tactic, but in bigger metropolitan areas it is unlikely that you can spend the time or money to “lock in” all of the best attorneys around.  But if you don’t, you could end up feeling the frustration first hand when the first couple of divorce attorneys that you call up can’t even talk to you because your wife has already been in for a consultation.  In short, there is some added benefit to not hiring the first divorce attorney that you talk to.