Understand the Full Financial Picture Before You File

For your state and your answers, the estimate comes back with:

• Attorney fees, as a range
• The court's filing fee
• The cost of serving papers on your spouse
• Mediator fees, where the path involves mediation
• A custody evaluation, where contested custody implies one
• Real estate costs, where a home is involved
• QDRO costs, where a retirement account has to be split
• The county clerk surcharge
• A total for the case, as a range
• Notes on what the estimate did and did not use
• Notes on the state's own rules that bear on the case