Iowa is a major mid-western state that many call the “American Heart”. Like many states, Iowa outlaws same sex marriage. This law was challenged as unconstitutional in the case of Varnum v. Brien and is currently undergoing review in the Iowa Supreme Court. Iowa is also home to less controversial marriage laws: the state is not a community property state, and Iowa allows couples to utilize no fault divorce proceedings. No fault divorce allows spouses to obtain a divorce without having to show fault on the part of either spouse for actions such as adultery.

In the News: Iowa has also been in the national judicial spotlight. In 1998 the Supreme Court issued a ruling in Knowles v. Iowa. The ruling was significant for criminal attorneys throughout the country. An Iowa state law allowing full blown searches of automobiles if the driver was issued a moving violation was found unconstitutional under the 4^th amendment. The traditional rule that officers can search your passenger compartment if you are arrested therefore does not extend to mere citations, as different safety precautions are evident in either scenario.

Information About the Iowa Legal and Court System

Iowa courts consist of the Supreme Court, Appellate Courts, and District Courts. Approximately 7,000 Iowa lawyers are licensed to practice within the state, with the vast majority of Iowa attorneys practicing in civil law such as contracts, personal injury, business law, and real estate. Iowa is divided into eight districts which is determined by legislature and population and size of the county. In each county, a clerk of the district court office manages all the trial court records and cases filed within the county

For more information on how to get additional legal assistance and on lawyers and courts, please visit the links below:

• Iowa Judicial Branch
• Iowa State Bar
• Iowa Bar Associations

Information About Getting Legal Assistance in Iowa

Lawyers in Iowa are among the only attorneys in the country with the pressure to pass their bar exam in only 2 tries. Although the majority of attorney applicants pass on their first try, special permission is required—and rarely granted—for applicants to take the bar more than twice. Most other states allow applicants to retake the exam an unlimited number of times.

Legal assistance is easy to come by in the State of Iowa because of the many talented Iowa lawyers in the area. These attorneys can represent you in many diverse areas of law including: personal injury, bankruptcy, automobile accidents, tax, DUI, arson, assault, divorce, child custody and alimony issues and more.

When you need to find a lawyer to help you with your case, using LegalMatch’s no-cost system assists you in getting access to pre-screened lawyers that are local and experienced in the legal practice area you specify.

Find a Iowa Lawyer

If you need an attorney in Iowa, consider visiting LegalMatch.com. Our website can assist you in finding an attorney in your area and offer you helpful legal tidbits. LegalMatch.com can help you find the right lawyer to represent you in your case. We offer a unique online legal matching service that takes information you provide about your case to pair you up with attorneys in your area that have experience in the subject matter your case deals with. LegalMatch also offers additional resources that can help you research your case with their online law library.

For more information on lawyer services and LegalMatch’s online client-attorney matching, read our detailed article entitled How to Find a Lawyer.