One of the most common fears about the divorce process is that the whole enterprise will turn into nothing but a fight. While the emotional side of the equation is hard to contain, the reality is that the legal side of the system is largely designed to prevent emotional fireworks. Keeping that idea in mind, here are three ways you can minimize the chance that a legal fight will break out.

Retain Counsel

Possibly more than in most situations where people retain counsel, paying for divorce law services is an investment in you. First, you'll reduce the number of boring headaches you'll have to deal with, especially filing paperwork with the court. Second, your divorce law attorney provides an instant fallback whenever your ex decides to make a fight out of something. Just say, "Talk to my lawyer." Finally, people without counsel tend to follow a lot of unnecessary dead ends.

Learn How the System Works

Knowing where dead ends may be is a big deal when it comes to avoiding pointless fights. Frankly, folks who move ahead with a divorce without counsel tend to have incorrect notions about how things are going to work.

Ask any divorce law attorney, and the first thing you'll learn is that many people are ill-informed about the process. It's extremely unlikely, for example, that you're going to head to court and expose your how your ex was cheating on you.

Even if you go full TV detective on it, the fact is that the no-fault divorce system in most states all but guarantees the judge just doesn't care what led to the divorce. The system is designed so that just one partner has to say the marriage has irreconcilable differences. After that, it doesn't matter. The court doesn't care.

Focus on What Matters

Nothing is more valuable during a divorce than just focusing on the basics. Assets are going to be divided up, for example. Who gets the house, if either of you wants it? Who pays spousal support? Think about where you're going to live and how to pay for the basics.

If your ex insists on making an emotional fight of it, don't reward the behavior. Stick to the facts. If they can be civil, that's fine. For every other scenario, they can write down your attorney's phone number and leave you alone.

To learn more, contact a divorce law attorney.