Will the court grant me extra time to obtain lawyer?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Will the court grant me extra time to obtain lawyer?
I filed for divorce from my husband 8 months ago.We went to court, both unrepresented due to lack of funds. We’re still
separated and I’m still unable to afford an attorney. However, his lawyer just sent papers to the address I had when I filed. Apparently now I have court in a couple days and he’s asking for my daughter. I just learned of this today. I’m scared of going against him and his lawyer. What can I do? Can I possibly get the court to postpone and have them send papers to my current address?
Asked on August 23, 2016 under Family Law, Texas
Answers:
B.H.F., Member, Texas State Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
The court can grant you extra time, but you need to file a motion for continuance asap. It starts with a motion. After you file a motion, the you need to contact the court coordinator and have the motion set on or before the date of your hearing. You then send via a letter or email, copy of the notice to your wife's attorney. At the hearing, ask the court for a reasonable time... roughly a couple of weeks. The judge will give you some time... but he will not give you months. If your divorce has been pending for several months, the judge will want to see some movement on the case. As an alternative or in conjunction with the motion for continuance, ask the court for more time and for mediation. Mediation will take roughly a month to set up and schedule... which will buy you some additional time to finish hiring an attorney.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.