Is legal recourse the best option for you? While we do not want to discourage your business, it is our goal to provide you with enough information that you can feel confident that your decision to take legal action is the right one for you. Please check the Loveless and Loveless Links for further help and/or advice on making your decision, or contact our office for a consultation to explore whether it is time for you to take legal action.

If legal action needs to be taken, please take the time to choose an attorney that will suit your needs. Not every law firm is a good fit for every client. By not taking the time to find the firm that fits your personality and your needs, you are doing yourself an injustice. Interview prospective counsel and ask questions. Make sure that you relay all the facts to the prospective attorney during the interview, even the ones you believe are not favorable to you. If the attorney is not able to determine both the pros and cons of your position, it will be very difficult for you to get an accurate analysis of your options. When you are preparing to be involved in a lawsuit, decide what goals you want to achieve and analyze with the prospective attorney whether those goals are realistic. Having specific goals and making a plan with your attorney to achieve those goals is important to the orderly progression of your case. When interviewing an attorney, find out what experience they have in the area of law in which you need assistance. Find out what county and/or court rooms the attorney routinely practices in, as being familiar with court protocol can be an advantage and many courts have different preferences. Ask the attorney what alternatives are available to resolve your legal issues aside from going to court. Mediation, settlement conferences, or collaborative law are some approaches that can keep you from having hearings at the courthouse. Listen carefully to the attorney you are interviewing and make a reasoned decision as to why you believe the attorney would be a good representative for you. We understand this is a difficult time for you, and probably a very emotional time, but it is important that you put careful consideration into your choice of counsel. The lawsuit you are involved in or about to become involved in has the potential to greatly affect the rest of your life, and who you have assisting you during this time may cost or save you thousands of dollars. It is important for you to feel comfortable with the attorney that you hire. You will likely have to explain extremely personal issues to that attorney at various times during your lawsuit, and you must be comfortable enough with your representative to do that. Aside from choosing whether to go forward with a lawsuit at all, picking your legal representative is one of the most important decisions you will have to make, so we encourage you to choose carefully.

Legal services can be expensive. How quickly a case is resolved is a major factor in cost. Travel time may be a factor in cost. In a Denton County case, being less than one mile from the courthouse minimizes our travel time. You also need to consider the hourly rates of the attorney you are considering hiring. Hourly rates vary widely, but sometimes attorneys at a lower hourly rate end up spending more time in a case, resulting in a higher final bill than a more efficient attorney. While there are many different ways to proceed in a case, it is our goal to proceed efficiently to conclude your legal matter. You must also keep in mind however that in a family law case, if the other side chooses to be arbitrary and capricious, dealing with the other side can become difficult and expensive. If the other side engages in poor behavior, you and your attorney will be compelled to deal with such conduct, and legal fees are likely to rise. It is our goal to minimize that problem. That is one reason that we encourage settlement, mediation, and collaborative law, which are frequently less contentious methods of resolving lawsuits.

Despite the availability of these alternatives to litigation, one of the critical factors in a lawsuit is the extent to which common sense and good judgment are exercised by both sides. Some clients and attorneys become consumed by minor matters and focus on them to the point where costs are driven up. We believe in exercising good judgment and taking reasoned steps towards achieving your goals in a case. We try not to be drawn into contentious litigation over minor issues in the case, although you cannot control the other side when they insist upon it. Where it is possible, we attempt to resolve minor issues quickly and in many cases, this will help to reduce the total cost of legal fees.

When settlement fails, the case will either be tried to a judge or to a jury. Curtis Loveless has tried over 50 jury trials in the area of child custody litigation. Mr. Loveless has tried hundreds of cases in his career, including defending felony criminal cases and participating in numerous civil trials and personal injury cases before specializing in family law. Darcy Loveless also has trial experience, including jury trial experience where custody was at issue.