Legal matters are something we all must deal with at various points in our lives. Sometimes they can arise because of mistakes you make or the mischievous actions of others.

Either way, the best thing you can do is learn about the most common legal matters you might face and how you can handle them properly.

Below are the top six unexpected legal matters that might arise in your life.

1) Identity Theft 

Identity theft is a growing problem for honest people in the world. There are many ways hackers and identity thieves can steal your personal information, such as your social security number and contact information.

Once they get this information, they can take out loans and credit cards in your name. You won’t know when identity theft strikes until creditors start contacting you out of the blue.

Then it will become quickly apparent that someone is stealing your credit information for malicious and selfish purposes.

Solution: Contact each of the three primary credit bureaus and freeze your credit profiles. Then call the police and report the identity theft to them.

2) Divorce 

Everyone assumes their marriages will last forever. But did you know that between 40% and 50% of marriages in the United States end in divorce?

These statistics give you a roughly 50% chance of having a successful marriage. But if you happen to be on the other end of that 50%, you could find yourself getting served with divorce papers at any time.

Sometimes you might not even realize your spouse wants to get divorced until the papers come to you.

At that point, your entire life will change forever. Not only do you have to deal with the emotional factor of the situation, but you may also have to pay a divorce settlement, alimony, and child support too.

Solution: There is no easy way out of a divorce, especially if the spouse wants to make it difficult.

You could try talking with your spouse to reach a reasonable agreement on the settlement and your future alimony and child support obligations. Otherwise, you should seek out the legal services of a qualified divorce attorney.

3) Income Tax Audits 

The Internal Revenue Service conducts random income tax audits on citizens every year. If you are unfortunate enough to get audited by the IRS, it might be a big shock to you.

People usually assume they filled out their tax returns correctly and paid the necessary amount of taxes owed.

But if you didn’t, you could find yourself owing a big tax bill with penalties and interest charges added.

Solution: Contact an accountant or tax attorney for further guidance. You could also contact your local IRS office for clarification on the amount you owe.

4) Car Accidents 

Car accidents happen every day in America. They can even happen to the best drivers if someone else on the road is not a good driver.

If you are fortunate enough to survive a car accident, you could still face legal, financial, and health consequences from it, no matter who is at fault.

Solution: Contact your insurance company. Your policy should cover the costs of hiring an attorney if one is necessary.

5) Lawsuits 

Not everyone expects to get sued. But when a deputy shows up at your house to serve you litigation papers, it could make you panic quickly.

It doesn’t even matter if you did nothing wrong because people can still get sued when they’re innocent.

Solution: You can contact an attorney for professional representation or attempt to represent yourself.

Either way, you need to respond to the lawsuit and follow the procedure to defend your side of the story.

6) DUI 

You don’t have to be a raging alcoholic to end up with a DUI charge. For instance, if you had a few drinks at a bar and then decided to drive home afterwards, it could be enough to get you a DUI charge.

All the police officer has to do is pull you over and give you a sobriety test. If you fail the test, you’ll get charged with a DUI.

Solution: It is never good to drive home after you’ve had a few drinks. But if you’ve already gotten charged with a DUI, the best thing you can do is contact a DUI defense attorney. Do not say anything to the police until your attorney arrives. That is your right under the law.

Conclusion 

Legal matters are expensive and stressful, so do everything you can to prevent them from happening.

But if you find yourself facing an unavoidable and unexpected legal issue, then seek out help from a legal professional. It is the only way to avoid facing severe penalties.

Or, you can get affordable legal services to protect yourself, family, and business from unexpected legal matters.

Legal Matters