Skilled divorce lawyers advocate for your interests and provide valuable guidance through divorce. But conflicting out tactics could block your access to the top divorce attorneys in your area, significantly limiting your options for top-tier representation.
If you are considering divorce, it's a good idea to become familiar with the legal concept of "conflicting out" and how to avoid or manage the situation.
Choosing A Top Divorce Attorney
The process of choosing a divorce attorney is paramount to the outcome of your case. Intricate divorce cases involve complex issues such as custody, identification and division of assets and debts, business valuation, spousal support, and child support. The best divorce attorneys are skilled in all these areas and strongly understand brand, media, and public image.
When you interview potential attorneys, it's essential to ask specific questions to help you determine if they are the right fit for your case. For example, if you're dealing with a high-net-worth divorce, high-profile divorce, business interests, complicated child custody matters, or other unique issues, ensure the attorney has experience handling similar cases.
Your approach is also important. Every lawyer has a different approach. Some may emphasize settlement negotiations, while others might take a more aggressive litigation approach. You will need to find a lawyer whose strategy aligns with your goals.
The more complex the divorce, the smaller the pool of attorneys available with relevant experience and skills. Even in large cities like Los Angeles and Manhattan, couples may find only a handful of attorneys who can effectively handle their specific needs.
Once you've finally found the perfect fit, you need to consider whether you can actually hire this attorney, and this is where conflicting out can pose a real challenge.
What Is Conflicting Out in Divorce?
The term "conflicting out" refers to a legal ethics principle where a law firm or attorney cannot represent a client if they have already represented or consulted with the opposing party. The rule is rooted in avoiding potential conflicts of interest and ensuring that a lawyer's representation of a client does not interfere with their duty to another client.
In the context of divorce, once an attorney has spoken with or met with one spouse, they may be disqualified from representing the other spouse due to the potential for conflicting interests. The rule extends to the entire law firm. If one attorney in a firm has met with one spouse and made some exchange of substantive information, no attorney in the firm can take on the representation of the other spouse.
Conflicting Out Tactics Can Limit Attorney Access
Avoiding conflicts of interest is all good until one considers the potential for one spouse to use it strategically to limit the other spouse's access to top-tier legal representation.
In some cases, a vengeful spouse may consult with every top attorney in the area in rapid succession, eliminating those law firms from the pool of legal counsel the other spouse has to choose from.
In other cases, a spouse may hire a prominent attorney and then instruct their attorney to contact several other leading law firms in the area, setting up consultations or meetings with those firms. The moment one of those firms meets with this spouse, the firm may be ethically "conflicted out" from representing the other spouse.
While not often uncovered and rarely reported, the strategy is widespread. Some reports allege Hiedi Klum may have been using conflicting out tactics to block Seal from accessing the most prominent LA celebrity attorneys during their divorce.
Maneuvers like these can make it significantly harder for the other spouse to find skilled legal representation, especially in smaller or specialized legal markets where the top firms in the area are the only ones with the necessary experience and resources to handle complex or contentious divorces.
What to Do If You Are Conflicted Out
The best way to avoid being conflicted out is to hire an attorney as soon as you begin contemplating divorce. Proactively retaining counsel reduces the chances of being blocked from working with top firms.
Of course, it may be too late to take this preventative step. If you find yourself conflicted, don't hesitate to locate a highly skilled attorney outside of your immediate jurisdiction. Many attorneys are admitted to practice law in multiple states. Though this may result in higher costs (including travel expenses), a distant attorney may be the most viable alternative.
You can search online legal directories and review platforms to find a qualified divorce attorney outside of your area. Be sure to search for lawyers who have handled cases like yours, using specific search terms like complex asset division, business ownership, or high-profile divorce.
Better yet, reach out to professional organizations specializing in family law. State bar associations and organizations like the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) or the American Bar Association's Family Law Section can offer referrals to qualified attorneys.
You can also ask colleagues, financial advisors, or other professionals who may have experience with similar divorces for recommendations. Focus on attorneys with experience handling matters in the relevant jurisdiction where your assets are located.
If your spouse's tactics have led to the conflicting out situation, you might be able to argue that they should bear the extra costs associated with hiring an attorney from outside the area. Courts may be inclined to grant such requests if it appears that one spouse has used underhanded strategies to restrict the other's access to legal counsel.
Understanding how conflicting out works and being proactive about hiring your attorney can help you avoid falling victim to this tactic. If you do find yourself conflicted out, don't hesitate to locate a highly skilled attorney outside of your immediate jurisdiction. With the right approach, you can still find skilled legal representation and protect your interests throughout the divorce process.