Beware Unbundled Legal Services
Updated: Apr 12
The concept behind Unbundled Legal Services is simple. There are some parts of the divorce process that you can do yourself. So, you should do those things that you can do yourself and just pay for the services you need. In theory, this makes sense. In practice, it is problematic.
Your divorce is a package, based on your circumstances, designed to determine asset distribution, spousal support, child support, and visitation. If you hire someone to perform a part of these services, they will have no clear perspective of the entire package. You need someone involved in the entire process.
There are things you can do that do not require an attorney. But these things are small and don’t save much money. In the end, you may find that you did not get much help. Or you did a lot of work and saved little money. Remember, the attorney is still going to charge the regular rate for the work they do. There is the same incentive to overbill. Also, an attorney providing unbundled services has no incentive to put time and effort understanding your case and the important issues since they are only providing limited services.
In the end, I think you would be better off doing it yourself and saving real money.