Monticello Divorce Attorney Answers: Can my spouse and I use the same lawyer for our divorce?

No, no, no, no. Lawyers have ethical rules they must follow, including several rules on avoiding conflicts of interest. Even in the most uncontested divorce, there may be inherent conflicts. For example, how much spousal maintenance is paid or how to treat the children for tax exemptions will benefit one party over the other. Spouses may decide to use only one lawyer in a divorce, but in that case one spouse is the client and the other spouse is pro se. The pro se spouse will probably sign a Waiver of Counsel form, acknowledging the fact that he or she is pro se and not represented by the attorney. The pro se spouse may take papers to another lawyer for the limited purpose of reviewing the documents before signing.