FAMILY LAW RESOURCES IN WASHINGTON – 2021
Divorce & Separation in Washington State
Basic Information
Washington State Courts
Family Law Handbook: https://www.courts.wa.gov/newsinfo/content/pdf/flhbmarriageedition.pdf
Divorce & Separation: https://www.courts.wa.gov/forms/?fa=forms.contribute&formID=13
Washington Law Help
Family Law Issues: htts://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/issues/family-law
Divorce & Separation: https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/issues/family-law/dissolution-of-marriage-divorce
Types of Divorce
Washington is a no-fault divorce state, which means neither spouse needs a reason for divorce aside from irreconcilable differences.
– Uncontested Divorce: when spouses agree upon the following basic issues:
– Contested Divorce: when spouses disagree upon one or more of the basic issues
– Uncontested-Contested Divorce: when spouses agree to resolve contested issues through mediation and negotiation with the help of a mediator
See https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/resource/general-information-about-divorce?ref=EfMJh
Filing for Divorce
https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/resource/filing-for-dissolution-of-marriage-divorce?ref=l6hNh
State Family Laws
Washington family laws governing divorce and separation are located in Chapter 26.09 of the Revised Code of Washington.
See https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=26.09
Procedural Rules
There are rules that govern the procedures of every Washington State court.
– Washington State statutes: https://apps.leg.wa.gov/rcw/
– Washington State case law: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/washington.html
– Washington State Court Rules – Superior Courts: https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/?fa=court_rules.list&group=sup&set=CR
– Findlaw (a national site with state specifics for legal information): https://statelaws.findlaw.com/washington-law.html
Washington Forms
There are certain required forms to use in family law matters.
See http://www.courts.wa.gov/forms/?fa=forms.static&staticID=14#FamLawForms
Washington State Largest Counties Information:
King County:
– Family Law Instructions: https://www.kingcounty.gov/courts/superior-court/family/family-law-instructions.aspx
– Family Law Court Rules: https://kingcounty.gov/courts/clerk/rules/Family.aspx
Snohomish County:
– Court Forms: https://snohomishcountywa.gov/5523/Snohomish-County-Superior-Court-Forms
Spokane County:
– Court Rules: https://www.spokanecounty.org/1675/Local-Court-Notices-Resources-Rules
References to Professional Legal Help
Lawyers
Washington State Bar Association’s Legal Directory: www.wsba.org
Washington Law Help: https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/find-legal-help?subtopic=dissolution%2Dof%2Dmarriage%2Ddivorce&topic=family%2Dlaw
Collaborative Lawyers and Other Professionals
https://www.collaborativeprofessionalsofwashington.org/find-a-professional/?role=S1_FLatt
Mediators/Alternative Dispute Resolution
Free services
Volunteer Settlement Conference Program
– Seattle: 206-477-1353
– Kent: 253-852-2345
Volunteers of America (Snohomish/Skagit Valley/Island County): www.voaww.org/drc
Lower Cost Services
State Programs:
– Moderate Means Program: www.moderatemeanswa.org
– Northwest Justice Project: https://nwjustice.org/get-legal-help
Local Legal Clinics & Programs
– King County Bar Association: 206-267-7070
– International District: 206-624-5633 ext. 4111
– Rainier Valley Legal Clinic: 206-695-7639
– Eastside Legal Assistance Program: https://www.elap.org/
Limited License Legal Technicians: www.wsba.org/LLLT
Qualified Private Services
Washington Mediation Association: https://washingtonmediation.org
Dispute Resolution Centers
– King County: www.kcdrc.org
– Kitsap County: www.kitsapdrc.org
– Peninsula: www.pdrc.org
– Yakima/Kittitas County: www.drcyakima.org
Minority Bar Associations
– Asian Bar Association of Washington: https://www.abaw.org/
– Disability Rights Bar Association: http://disabilityrights-law.org/
– Filipino Lawyers of Washington: http://www.filipinolawyers.org/
– Hispanic National Bar Association: https://hnba.com/
– Korean American Bar Association of Washington: https://www.kaba-washington.org/
– Latina/o Bar Association of Washington: https://www.lbaw.org/
– Loren Miller Bar Association: https://www.lmba.net/
– Mother Attorney Mentoring Association of Seattle: https://mamaseattle.org/
– Middle Eastern Legal Association of Washington: https://www.melaw.org/
– National Asian Pacific American Bar Assoc: https://www.napaba.org/
– National Association of Women Lawyers: https://www.nawl.org/
– National Bar Association: https://www.nationalbar.org/
– National Black Law Students Association: https://nationalblsa.wildapricot.org/
– National Conference of Women’s Bar Association: https://ncwba.org/
– National Lesbian and Gay Law Association: https://lgbtbar.org/
– QLAW Association: http://www.q-law.org/
– South Asian Bar Association of Washington: https://www.sabaw.org/
– Vietnamese American Bar Association of Washington: https://www.vabaw.com/
– Washington Attorney’s with Disabilities Association: https://wadaweb.org/
– Washington Women Lawyers: https://wwl.org/
Washington State Bar Association Referral Service: https://www.wsba.org/for-the-public/find-legal-help
King County Bar Association Referral Service: http://www.kcba.org/For-the-Public/Hire-a-Lawyer
Domestic Abuse Resources & Information
Eastside Legal Assistance Program
National Resources
CALL: 211 (help by zip code)
TEXT: “HOME” to 741741
National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233 (hard of hearing: 800-787-3224)
Peace in the Home Helpline: 888-847-7205
WA Legal Help
WA State Domestic Violence Information & Referral: https://www.domesticviolenceinforeferral.org/
WA State Protection Order Resources: www.protectionorder.org
King County Sexual Assault Resource Center: 888-998-6423
DV Family Law Clinic (Vashon Island): 206-940-6430
Mental Health Resources
Substance Use/Gambling Resources
Washington Court Certified
– Washington State Directory of Certified Resources: https://www.hca.wa.gov/assets/free-or-low-cost/directory-certified-behavioral-health-agencies.pdf
General
– Washington Recovery Helpline (24-hour): https://www.warecoveryhelpline.org/
– Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline
General Mental Health Resources
National Alliance on Mental Illness (WA): http://namiwa.org
American Psychological Association: https://www.apa.org/topics/divorce/
American Psychological Association Psychologist Locator: https://locator.apa.org/?_ga=2.86597592.1335761285.1497298925-
Washington State Resources
Washington Mental Health Counselors Association: https://wmhca.org/
Washington Association of Family Therapists: https://networks.aamft.org/washington/about-us/who-we-are
Multicultural Therapists: https://www.multiculturalcounselors.org/
Military Families
https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/issues/veterans-military/veteran-and-military-families
https://www.militaryfamily.org/info-resources/marriagedivorce/
https://www.military.com/spouse/relationships/military-divorce
https://veteranslegalservices.org
Support Groups
Divorce Lifeline: https://samaritanps.org/training-and-groups/divorce-lifeline-group-counseling/
Parenting & Children Resources
Washington Court Certified Parent Education Classes
https://www.divorce-education.com/wa/
Parenting Professionals
Organization of Parent Education Programs: https://www.opepwa.org/
Child Abuse
WA State Child Protective Service: https://www.atg.wa.gov/child-abuse-neglect
Child Support
Child Support Guidelines: https://www.dshs.wa.gov/esa/division-child-support
Alimony/Spousal Support/Maintenance
https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=26.09.090
Financial Resources
Free Credit Reports
https://www.annualcreditreport.com/index.action
Pensions and retirement plans
General information: http://www.qdrodesk.com/qdro/The-QDRO-and-the-Divorce-Decree- Settlement-164.shtml
Social Security
You can get a Social Security statement that will tell you if you have sufficient credits to receive Social Security and gives you an estimated benefit.
See https://www.ssa.gov/myaccount/
For information about eligibility based on your ex-spouse’s benefits, see https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/applying7.html
https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/applying7.html#h4
Internal Revenue Service – Pension, IRA and retirement information
Types of Retirement Plans: https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/plan-sponsor/types-of-retirement-plans
Retirement Plan FAQ: https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/retirement-plans-frequently-asked-questions-faqs
IRA accounts: https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/individual-retirement-arrangements-iras
Distributions from IRA: https://www.irs.gov/publications/p590b
Internal Revenue Service – Tax issues
IRS Publication 504, Divorced or Separated Individuals: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p504.pdf
Free Tax Preparation Services
AARP Tax Aide Sites: https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/resource/aarp-tax-aide-sites?ref=GrYaT
Free Tax Filing Assistance: https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/resource/free-tax-filing-assistance?ref=GrYaT
Military OneSource Tax Service: https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/resource/military-onesource-tax-services?ref=GrYaT
