LAST MINUTE LAWYER TIP FOR PRO SE LITIGANTS

Representing yourself in a divorce case isn’t an easy proposition. At the minimum, you must file a ton of forms, follow some rules and look at a checklist or two. And this is assuming you aren’t headed towards trial! If you and your spouse agree to everything, you then must write it all down, have it signed by both parties and then file your signed marital settlement agreement with the court.

Then you must follow some more rules to have your final judgment entered. In Seminole County, Florida, if you are pro se, you must file a Form “A” with the Seminole County Clerk of Court, which is what is used to begin scheduling a final hearing in front of the judge for the entry of your final judgment. It can take up to 1 month for your hearing to be scheduled after the Form A is filed (Note: In theory it could take longer but we’ll go with a month for the sake of argument).

If you are in a rush to have your final judgment entered and don’t want to wait a month or longer, you can hire an attorney to file the final judgment in your case and this will speed things up considerably. This is because final judgments in Seminole County can be submitted by attorneys directly to a judge. It is a bit counterintuitive to think that an attorney could actually speed things up but that’s exactly what happens. In my experience, after I submit a final judgment to a Seminole County, Florida judge, it is usually signed within one or two days.

If you’re dying to have your divorce entered so that you can marry someone else, or just because you want your divorce done, this last-minute lawyer tip might come in handy. Please feel free to give me a call with questions about your pro se divorce or any other Florida Family Law issue.