When Apollo Nida filed his petition for divorce, he probably didn’t count on spelling errors or forgetting that his wife filed a petition contemporaneously with his filing. Worse, he didn’t plan on receiving an inequitable distribution of the couple’s marital property.

Nida filed his petiton pro se from prison and probably now regrets it. “Pro se” is a Latin term that means advocating on one’s own behalf before a court, without representation of an attorney. Nida filed his petition without legal counsel and apparently chose to ignore the fact that Parks had already filed.

Parks claims that not only did she file for divorce prior to the filing of Nida’s petition, she has already obtained a judgment. Apparently, Nida didn’t have any legal representation when Phaedra appeared in court and obtained her divorce decree. However, Nida’s newly-hired lawyers claim that the judge unfairly distributed their property in Parks’ favor, and want to argue on Nida’s behalf for a more equitable distribution of the couple’s marital assets, as well as a fairer child custody arrangement.

Spouses seriously considering divorce are often tempted to file for divorce without an attorney. In the alternative, they utilize forms provided by the local divorce court or some other source such as a divorce how-to book or website. Although a do-it-yourself divorce may be possible and functional for some marriages, most spouses should consider hiring an attorney to ensure that all of their rights, primarily those related to property and child custody, are adequately protected.

Nida filed his divorce petition from federal prison, where he is serving an 8-year sentence for financial fraud. He requested joint legal custody of their two children and an equitable split of their assets. According to Nida, the couple separated in June of 2014 after nearly 5 years of marriage. In his petition, Nida claims that they can no longer live together as husband and wife and that the union is “irretrievably broken.”

The couple was married in 2009 and Parks has starred on the hit Bravo television show, The Real Housewives of Atlanta, for nine seasons. Parks is a successful attorney and is managing partner of The Parks Group, an Atlanta-based law firm. Since his incarceration for fraud, Nida has become engaged to be married.

Parks reported in November of 2016 that the divorce was finalized, but Nida claimed to have no knowledge of this since Parks allegedly never produced a final divorce decree. Nida filed a motion to vacate it on the basis that Parks misspelled his name as “Nita,” as well as the fact that he Parks allegedly took advantage of his incarceration in prison, never providing him with notice of the final divorce hearing held in July 2016.

The Men’s Divorce Law Firm can guide you through the confusion and pursue a path that is the most beneficial for you in any family law situation. Contact the Men’s Divorce Law Firm to schedule a consultation with a caring professional, and aggressive advocate for men’s rights in divorce, child timesharing (custody), and paternity matters. Call 321-DIVORCE today to schedule a consultation and follow our Twitter page for more insights about divorce and family law.