Dissolution of marriage, explained before anything is filed
Most people who call about a divorce are not sure yet what they are calling about. Maybe papers just arrived, maybe you have been thinking about it for a year, maybe you are only trying to learn what a dissolution of marriage actually involves. Any of those is a fine reason to pick up the phone. Attorney Lorie Mason takes the first conversation slowly, and consultations are always free.
If you were served with papers, bring them, and bring the envelope if you still have it. A judge sets the calendar, and the dates printed on those pages matter more than anything anyone says about them in the hallway. Put them on the table in front of Lorie first, and she can tell you what the document is asking for and what a response looks like.
A divorce usually touches three things at once: the children, the money and the house. Lorie helps you sort them in an order that makes sense, rather than all at the same time at midnight. The firm cannot promise how a case will end or how long it will take. It can promise that you will not be left wondering what is going on in your own case.
Children first: custody, visitation and child support
When there are children, their week comes before everything else. Child custody and visitation decide where they sleep, who picks them up and how holidays get split. Child support decides how the cost of raising them is shared between two households. Each of those can be written into an order, so there is a plan to follow on the hard days instead of a fresh argument.
Custody matters can also arrive with very little warning. A client, Jessica Criswell, wrote in a Google review that she was “summoned to court for a custody case that I was unaware of”, that Lorie only had a few days to prepare, and that “she came prepared”. If a court date has landed on you this week, call now. Do not wait until you feel ready.
Bring what shows your child’s routine: school and daycare details, work schedules, a calendar if you keep one. Write down the questions you are afraid to ask. A good lawyer would rather hear the awkward ones early. Lorie and her staff answer calls from Faulkner County and beyond, and after-hours calls are always available if needed at (501) 504-6275.
Dividing marital debts, and a lawyer who explains as she goes
People expect divorce to be about the house and the savings account. Just as often it is about what is owed: credit cards, vehicle loans, medical bills, a loan that one spouse signed for and the other barely remembers. Division of marital debts is one of the matters the firm handles, and it deserves the same attention as anything you own. Gather statements and notices before you come in, even the ones you would rather not open.
A divorce client, Jacqueline Gault, wrote on Google that she reached out to Lorie several times during the length of her divorce and that Lorie was patient and “took the time to make sure I understood what was going to happen”. She added that Lorie “always said I could call her if I thought of another question”. That is the standard to hold any lawyer to: no question too small, no surprise you only learn about in the courtroom.
The firm describes itself as client focused and committed to straight forward communication. In practice, that means you hear what Lorie thinks of your case early, in plain English, and you decide what to do next. Call (501) 504-6275 or send a note through the contact page, and the first consultation costs nothing.
