Divorce Attorney in Georgetown SC

The journey from the beginning to the end of a divorce can be overwhelming for most people. Understanding all the details and ensuring you receive all you deserve is difficult without qualified and compassionate guidance from a seasoned legal professional. Instead of adding to your stress, put your trust in our divorce attorney Georgetown SC law firm.

At Indigo Family Law, we focus on listening to your situation and tailoring a plan to resolve your divorce in a way that meets your needs and prepares you for the next chapter of life. We offer free consultations so you can discuss your options and choose how to proceed. With over 40 years of combined legal experience, our family law attorneys have the knowledge and background for every circumstance.

Why Indigo Family Law Should Be Your Choice for Divorce in Georgetown, SC

At Indigo Family Law, our team recognizes the struggles and concerns of Georgetown residents when it comes to all matters in family law. Whether you are adopting a child, building an estate plan, or ending a marriage, you need someone who makes you feel comfortable during difficult times. If you expect a struggle regarding child support and custody, you need to know your divorce attorney will fight for your children’s best interests.

Dedication, integrity, and honesty are key to every case we handle. We know that family is everything that matters, and we work to protect your family, even when it is breaking apart. In many ways, divorce can be a stepping stone to a better kind of life, especially when you have accomplished and caring Georgetown divorce lawyers at your side.

We offer a different way of managing your divorce case, starting with free case reviews. No matter how simple or complex your situation is, we can guide you through asset division, parenting plans, and other matters. Read through our client testimonials to learn more about how we have helped friends and neighbors.

South Carolina Laws Affecting Your Divorce

Most of the legal requirements around divorce appear in the South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 20, Chapter 3. This statute lays out details such as the following:

You or your spouse must be a resident of this state for at least one year to file for divorce.
You can file on the grounds of adultery, desertion, physical cruelty, or drunkenness.
You can file for no-fault divorce if you have been living separately for at least one year.
There is no legal status of “separated” in SC.
The earliest you can receive a final decree of divorce is 90 days after you file.

Common law marriages used to be legal in the state, but a recent South Carolina Supreme Court ruling eliminated the ability to consider yourself married without the benefit of a legal document. Regardless of whether you are formally married or have maintained a common law relationship, dividing property, deciding on child custody, and dissolving the union require skilled legal assistance for the best outcome.

Our Divorce Attorneys Help You Create Thoughtful Child Custody Arrangements

For couples with children, the hardest part of divorce is explaining what will happen to the family. In South Carolina, parents usually receive two kinds of custody:

Physical custody, which addresses where the children live
Legal custody, which allows them to make decisions about healthcare, education, and other concerns

The court examines various aspects to determine which parent is most fit to retain primary custody, including:

Which parent handles most of the children’s care
Which parent makes most of the decisions regarding the children
The relationship between each child and each parent
Each parent’s income and living situation
Each parent’s health and age
Which parent is best able to care for the children’s needs
The child’s preference if the child is old enough (usually age 13 and above)

In many instances, one parent retains the family home and primary physical custody to maintain stability for the children, but every case will be different. Family court judges prioritize the children’s best interests, and you need lawyers who can align your family’s needs with the viewpoint of the court. We can defuse heated conversations to reach logical solutions for child custody and speed up the process.

Modifying Custody Orders in South Carolina

If you find that your circumstances have changed after your divorce is final, you may need guidance in modifying a child custody order. Child custody modifications are challenging, and most often involve asking for more custody or removing custody from a parent who has become unfit. We can help you collect the documents and evidence necessary to convince the court that a change is in the children’s best interests.

You will need to prove to the court that the children are in danger or have suffered harm from the other parent if you are requesting full custody. If you have limited or no custody, you must show you have improved your circumstances enough to provide a fit home. Because we believe in honesty, we can candidly assess your situation and advise whether your request could succeed, potentially saving you time, money, and effort.

We Can Help You Craft and Modify Child Support Orders

Along with hammering out child custody, our divorce attorneys in Georgetown, SC will address child support arrangements between you and your spouse. We explain what you need to know about child support in SC and help you assemble the necessary materials. The state uses a specific calculator and process to help you estimate what the monthly payments could be.

One parent is the payor (who sends child support) and the other is the payee (who receives the support). Child support reimburses the payee for food, shelter, and clothing they have provided for the children, although some payors perceive the money as a personal payment to the other parent. Our divorce attorneys will thoroughly and clearly negotiate a fair arrangement, always keeping the children’s best interests as the main motivation.

If either parent experiences a substantial change in income or expenses, the court will accept petitions to modify the child support order. For example, if the payor receives a promotion and a higher salary, the payee can request a support increase. Likewise, if the payor loses their job, they can request a decrease in payments until they find other employment.

Our Divorce Attorneys Can Seek Alimony (Spousal Support)

Many people consider alimony, now known as spousal support, to be old-fashioned or only for very rich couples. However, when one partner gives up their career to stay home with children or supports the other spouse who gained substantial education, the supporting spouse may be unable to earn a sufficient living after divorce. In those cases, a tenacious divorce lawyer from Indigo Family Law can develop your demands for spousal support.

Spousal support is not automatic during a divorce case, and you will need to provide evidence showing your financial situation and needs. Payments may be in a lump sum or periodic, and they may last for a specific timeframe, all depending on the details of the marriage and each partner’s situation.

What Is a “Fair and Equitable” Property Division in South Carolina?

The divorce laws in South Carolina dictate that property and debt division be done in a “fair and equitable” manner, which many people confuse with “a 50/50 split.” When couples have a marital home, mostly equal incomes, and a desire to share custody evenly, the division may equal close to half for each parent. However, when you and your spouse share more assets, such as a business, or one partner earns substantially more than the other, the property division may be less even.

You will also need to divide any debts, tax obligations, and other liabilities in a fair and equitable fashion. If one spouse holds significant debts for the business they owned prior to marriage, the other spouse may wish to avoid being held responsible. It can be complicated to demonstrate that you are not accountable for debts if you benefited from the business during the marriage, which is where working with a skilled Georgetown divorce attorney is critical.

Part of the divorce process is identifying which assets are marital and which are separate. Most of what you acquire during marriage is considered marital, except under very specific circumstances. To show that something is separate property and should not be divided requires extensive documentation, which your lawyer can help you obtain and present to the court.

Separate Property in a South Carolina Divorce

Many individuals own their own homes or perhaps have businesses prior to marriage. As long as you maintain those assets fully separate from your spouse, you may be able to claim them as separate property during a divorce. To do so, you must show the following criteria:

You never added your spouse’s name to the asset (such as a house, car, or other item)
You never paid taxes, mortgage, or other expenses for the asset from a jointly held account
You inherited or received the item as a gift in your name only
You have a pre-marital agreement stating that you will receive the assets in a divorce
If you have lottery winnings, you must show that you did not deposit any of the money into a joint account

If you have a business prior to the union, it can be harder to show that your spouse never benefited from or provided services for the company. They may seek equitable division if they invested sweat equity or request compensation for maintaining the home and children while you focused on the business. This is especially true if the business would not have been able to succeed without that assistance. Again, these discussions are challenging and require guidance from an experienced lawyer for a satisfactory outcome.

Marital Property in South Carolina

Home, cars, furniture, accounts, and nearly everything else a couple acquires during their marriage becomes marital property. The court will consider many factors to determine how to divide everything fairly, including the following:

The length of the marriage
The current income and earning capacity for each spouse
Whether it is in the children’s best interests for the primary custodial parent to retain the family home
Whether the couple must sell assets to pay off debts and other liabilities
The existence and legal strength of any marital agreements

Generally, individuals can keep their personal vehicles, retirement accounts, and items such as jewelry. If there are multiple valuable assets, negotiations can take longer as each side attempts to procure its fair share. Our divorce attorneys will help you determine the best course with honesty and sound legal advice.

Our Divorce Attorneys Are with You Every Step of the Way

Founding attorneys Brana Williams and Ryan Stampfle built Indigo Family Law to be different from law firms you may have dealt with in the past. They want their clients to get the legal guidance they need and know they can rely on our law firm to be there through the ups and downs of life. Brana, Ryan, and the entire team believe in offering the following:

Commitment to Your Well-Being: We do not simply address your legal matters, but we also get to know you as a person and learn how we can fully serve your concerns.
We Listen Closely and Answer Your Questions Clearly: The law is famously complicated for most people, but we take the time to understand your situation and use everyday language to explain how the law will affect your case.

We Handle the Paperwork for You: Divorce petitions and other documents have strict deadlines, and we ensure you do not miss these by taking these details off your shoulders.
We Represent You in All Matters: Whether it is facing down your spouse during negotiations or standing up in court, our attorneys are there for you to protect your interests and limit your stress.

Even a friendly divorce comes with strong emotions and legal worries, but our team will make every effort to help you get to the other side so you can begin to move on with your life. When you are ready to make other changes in life, we can also help you with estate planning, adoptions, and other family law needs.

Contact Our Experienced Divorce Attorney Georgetown SC Law Firm

Along with the emotional turmoil, you will likely face substantial legal and financial concerns during a divorce. At Indigo Family Law, we strive to help you through all aspects to reduce your stress and worry. Our attorneys have been through many of the same situations, so we can compassionately support you throughout the process. It costs nothing to find out what we can do for you, so contact us now and learn more. We are ready to stand by your side and demand what you deserve.