Why DC Divorce Forms Is Different
1) Know Who You are Dealing With
DC Divorce Forms is operated by SmartLegalForms, Inc., a legal services company based in Baltimore, Maryland. We have been in business since 1997 and have operated a network of smart legal form web sites during this entire period, serving tens of thousands of consumers. We also provide a service to law firms to enable them to offer online legal services and automated legal documents.
The founder of SmartLegalForms is Richard S. Granat, who also founded one of the nation's first virtual law firms. Mr. Granat Co-Chaired the ELawyering Task Force of the Law Practice Management Section of the American Bar Association, which has developed standards and guidelines for legal information web sites. He also served on the Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services of the ABA, and was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Bar Association for Innovation in the Delivery of Legal Services. Mr. Granat helped create the paralegal profession in the United States, and was the President of the Philadelphia Institute for Paralegal Training, the nation's first paralegal educational institution. Mr. Granat is a nationally known expert on divorce law and led the development team which created the legal forms available on this web site.
2) Know the Difference Between Self-Prepared Legal Forms and Legal Document Preparation Services. Here's the Truth:
Many legal form web sites obscure the difference between "legal forms" and "legal document preparation." When you purchase a "legal form", what you get is a blank legal form that hopefully includes detailed instructions on how to use it.
Some web sites offer what is called a "legal document preparation service", and often charge much more for the same legal form. However, you should be aware that a legal document preparation company (a non-law firm) CANNOT give legal advice of any kind. The only thing a document preparer can do is check for typos and make sure you answered all of the questions. We know from our experience that a trained paralegal can be very valuable. Unfortunately, in the United States, a paralegal or any non-lawyer for that matter, cannot provide legal advice of any kind. If they do, it is considered the unauthorized practice of law.
Therefore, your best value is to purchase legal forms only. Legal form preparation web sites that don't make this clear are misrepresenting what they offer because they are taking advantage of the average consumer's lack of knowledge. We know some consumers take comfort in knowing that a real person is involved in the review and preparation of the forms, but the reality is that a non-lawyer cannot change the forms in any way or give legal advice.
3) Know the Difference between a Legal Forms Service and Services Provided by an Attorney.
It is not accurate when a web site claims that you can save thousands of dollars by not using an attorney. When you purchase services from an attorney, you get legal advice and law firm accountability. Moreover, the statement is a misrepresentation and violates the American Bar Association's standards for legal information web sites. We know from our experience that many people can represent themselves in an uncontested divorce. On the other hand, there are some situations where you will need legal advice and the assistance of attorney. For example, if one spouse does not agree to the divorce.
4) Does the Company Comply with the American Bar Association Standards for Legal Information Web Sites?
The ABA Standards require that a web site publish certain kinds of critical information, such as the identity of the publisher, the source of the legal information, and when the legal information was last updated. We comply with the American Bar Association's "Best Practice Guidelines for Legal Information Web Sites." Look for this sign of compliance before your purchase services from any legal web site, whether it is a law firm site, or a legal forms web site.
5) Look For "Unbundled" Legal Services offered by an Attorney as an Alternative to DIY Legal Forms.
There is a new breed of lawyer who is interested in serving people for everyday legal problems at a rate they can afford. These attorneys offer what are called "Unbundled Legal Services" which are legal services bundled together with legal advice for a flat fee -- often a fee which is the same that you would pay from a legal forms company. Our company, through our DirectLaw division, has recruited a unique, nationwide network of attorneys who provide "unbundled" legal services online and at an affordable, fixed price. You can purchase legal advice from this network on a per call basis, or purchase your divorce documents bundled with legal advice. You can search for an attorney in your state by clicking here.
6) Can I Try Before I Buy? Is My Purchase 100% Guaranteed?
Yes, we are so confident in the accuracy of our legal forms that we enable you to see what you are getting before you buy it. We also offer a 100% court approval guarantee.
If for any reason your forms are not accepted by the court in your state, we will give you a full refund. However, please understand that the legal documents offered from our family of web sites are intended to be prepared and filed within thirty (30) days.
Changes in laws/guidelines can make older documents obsolete or unacceptable for courts. These types of changes can be adopted by courts at any time. As such, your prepared documents must be filed within thirty (30) days from the date purchase. If your prepared forms are rejected, and you did not file your documents within this time frame, there will be no refunds.
We regularly track changes and update our forms accordingly to make sure that what we publish is the best it can be. Our legal forms must be accurate because lawyers also use them. In addition to tracking changes in the law, we take feedback from customers, lawyers, and court personnel very seriously.
7) Does the Site Provide Excellent Customer Service?
Our US based customer service team will answer your questions with courtesy and respect within 24-48 hours. Our normal business hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 pm Eastern. You can reach us by telephone, or through our contact form. Please understand, however, that we cannot provide answers to questions that require legal advice.
8) How Secure is the Site? What are the Privacy Safeguards?
We do not store any of your credit card information. All credit card transactions are processed through PayPal, and none of your financial information is kept or accessible by DC Divorce Forms. DC Divorce Forms is hosted at Amazon Web Services.
We will never sell or use your e-mail address for any other purpose, except to communicate with you about the service your purchased. We apply the same security and privacy standard to your account as we do for our law firm clients. No other name change legal form web site can make this claim, because no other legal form company in this market also works directly with law firms.
Washington DC Divorce Forms
| Washington DC Divorce | $59.00 |
| DC MSA | $39.00 |
| DC Divorce & MSA Combo (best value) | $89.00 |
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