When the divorce process is taking a lot longer than you thought it would or the results are just not what you’re hoping for, it may be time to consider what’s not working. Is it the nature of the negotiations-one party being completely unreasonable-or, is it possible you need a new attorney? Here are some of the questions you should ask yourself if you’re considering changing attorneys.

1. Does your attorney share your vision? Your kids are suffering; the bills are going through the roof, your attorney used the ‘take no prisoners’ approach when you were looking for a reasonable settlement. He served your spouse in front of the kids, asked for full custody when you were fine with joint, requested every financial document your spouse ever came across for the past five years. You know your spouse is realistic, this is not what you or your spouse envisioned.
2. You feel like the dumbest person in the room. You weren’t consulted before decisions were taken and demands are made of your spouse. You’re going to court yet have no idea why. When you ask a question, you feel like your attorney doesn’t want to answer you or is condescending when he does, or you’re too scared to ask anything and feel like your fate is in his/her hands.
3. Your attorney is not responsive. It takes days, sometimes weeks to get a callback or email response. Your spouse is telling you that your attorney doesn’t respond to his/her attorney and you know you have given them all the necessary information. Your attorney promises to do something then never follows up.
4. You haven’t received a bill in months and have no idea how much you’ve spent, or your attorney sends you a bill but refuses to provide details on how the hours were used.

Changing attorneys is very costly. A new attorney will have to get up to speed on your case, however, at the end of the day, you may end up spending more money staying with the wrong attorney than switching to the right one.