Collaborative Facilitator 1 - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

Collaborative Divorce: What Does A Facilitator Do?

/in //Tags: , , , , , , , , , by

In a Collaborative Divorce, the Facilitator plays a crucial role in keeping everyone on task, aiding communication, managing emotions between you and your spouse, and, where applicable, tailoring a parenting plan for your children. A Facilitator is a professional who is licensed under Chapter 490 or 491, Florida Statutes.  Here are some specific tasks they might undertake:

1. Project Management:

Facilitators are the project managers of the Collaborative Process.  Without a clear direction, divorce negotiations can get off track real fast.  The Facilitator keeps you and your lawyers focused on your interests rather than positions, works so that we are making the most efficient use of your time and money during team meetings, and checks in to see whether everyone has completed the tasks assigned to them.

2. Emotional Support:

Facilitators provide emotional support to both you and your spouse throughout the Collaborative Process. Divorce can be a highly stressful and emotional experience, even under the best of circumstances, and having a trained professional to talk to can be invaluable.

3. Communication Facilitation:

They help facilitate communication between the you and your spouse, ensuring that discussions remain productive and respectful. This can include helping each each of you express your needs and concerns effectively and ensuring that you both feel heard and understood.

Read more →

2024 04 Cordover Transgender Florida Bar News - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

April 2024 Florida Bar News Publishes Cordover Letter on Welcoming Transgender Clients

/in , //Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , by

The April 2024 edition of the Florida Bar News, a monthly newspaper that goes to all lawyers in Florida, published a letter to the editor (click on link and scroll down) submitted by Family Diplomacy managing attorney Adam B. Cordover.  The letter urged lawyers to be welcoming to all, including transgender clients.  You can find the letter reproduced below:

BE WELCOMING

With legislation targeting the transgender community and the general coarsening of public rhetoric, it is important for us lawyers to remember one thing: Transgender folks are people, too. They have hopes and fears, dreams and obligations, just like everyone else. They want to get a driver’s license, graduate from school, build a family, travel, and grow a career without being impeded or having to go into detail about their private lives.

My family law practice has welcomed transgender clients in a non-judgment atmosphere since its founding in 2010. We have done so not only because it is the decent thing to do — which it is — but also because it makes good business sense.

Read more →

Create Path Collaborative Divorce - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

Create Your Own Path with Collaborative Divorce

/in //Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , by

If you’re reading this, chances are you’re either going through a divorce or know someone who is. And let’s face it, divorce isn’t exactly a walk in the park. But what if I told you that in Florida there’s a way to navigate this challenging time while still preserving your self-determination and sanity? Enter: Collaborative Divorce.

Picture this: instead of duking it out in a courtroom with lawyers battling it out, Collaborative Divorce brings everyone to the table – you, your soon-to-be ex, and a team of professionals (including separate attorneys to provide each of you with independent legal advice) dedicated to finding solutions that work for everyone involved. Sounds pretty good, right? Here’s why it’s worth considering:

Collaborative Divorce Puts You in the Driver’s Seat

One of the biggest perks of Collaborative Divorce is that it empowers you to take control of your own future. Instead of leaving decisions about your life in the hands of a judge, you and your soon-to-be ex get to work together to find solutions that meet both of your needs. From dividing assets to co-parenting agreements, you have a say in it all.

Read more →

Cordover Sarasota Collaborative Divorce Review - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

Sarasota Collaborative Divorce Review: Solid Legal Advice

/in , //Tags: , , by

Most people going through divorce are not looking to make an enemy out of their spouse.  Rather, they are seeking to move on with their lives and make sure that they — and their kids, if any — are okay at the end of the day.  That is why we specialize in Collaborative Divorce, a private and more humane way to resolve family disputes.

Here is a recent review that a client left on the Google page of our Sarasota office.

Read more →

Aba Approves Collaborative Law - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

ABA Approves Collaborative Law Resolution 703

/in //Tags: , , , , , by

The American Bar Association (“ABA”) House of Delegates has just approved Resolution 703, which promotes the Uniform Collaborative Law Act and Uniform Collaborative Law Rules (“UCLA”).  In 2016, after many years of effort from professionals around the state, Florida adopted a version of the UCLA for use in divorce and family law.

Below are parts of the text (citations omitted) from Resolution 703:

Read more →

2024 Florida Academy Of Collaborative Professionals - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

2024 FACP Conference Early Bird Rate Ends This Week

/in , , //Tags: , , , , , , , , by

I am excited to lead a workshop at the 12th Annual Florida Academy of Collaborative Professionals (“FACP”) Conference, taking place April 18-20, 2024, in Boca Raton, Florida.  The Conference, which is dedicated to lawyers, judges, mental health professionals, financial professionals, mediators, and other professionals who want to help divorcing families in a better way, has an early bird registration rate that ends March 8, 2024.

Click Here to Learn More About the Conference and Register

 

From the Conference Website:

The theme of the conference is All the Pieces Matter: Getting the Most Out of Your Team.

Teamwork is the bedrock of the Collaborative Process. Building the right team to lead divorcing clients through difficult decision-making is critical to the success of the Collaborative matter. This year’s conference will look at how teamwork can make the impossible come true. We will share with our FACP membership unique techniques, experiences, protocols and methods colleagues and Collaborative leaders have created and applied, which have promoted more successful divorce outcomes in their Collaborative matters.

Read more →

Retainer 1 1 - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

How Does Our Collaborative Divorce Retainer Work?

/in //Tags: , , , , , by

If you have been considering divorce, hopefully you have looked at the private and non-adversarial Collaborative option.  If so, you may recognize that it is a better option for most families as you and your attorneys are working together to reach a resolution rather than wasting time and money on preparing for a trial that likely will never happen.  After all, 80 to 90+% of all divorces end in an agreement rather than a judge-imposed solution; accordingly, in Collaborative Divorce, the attorneys and other professionals focus solely on reaching an out-of-court agreement and are prohibited from engaging in contested court hearings.

You may have heard that lawyers generally require retainers.  Our firm believes in transparency, including transparency of retainers.  The goal of this post is to inform you of our requirements and make sure you are knowledgeable on and comfortable with how we operate.

How Our Collaborative Divorce Retainer Works (Updated June 1, 2025)

To begin your divorce case, you’ll pay an evergreen retainer of $8,000 (it may be lower for non-divorce work). This is not a flat fee. We will bill you based on the actual time we spend working on your matter, and we will apply those charges against the $8,000 retainer. The funds will be held in a special bank account (called a “trust account” or “IOTA account”), where your funds are matched with your specific case file. As we work on your case, we’ll take money out of that account to pay for the time we have spent on your matter.

You agree to keep at least $8,000 in that trust account while we’re representing you. If the amount drops below that, we’ll charge your card on file to bring it back up. To be clear, every time we send you an invoice, we will charge the card that we have on file to bring the retainer back up to $8,000.  At the end of your case, you will be refunded any unused portion of your retainer.

Read more →

Maintaining Privacy In Your Divorce - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

Maintaining Privacy In Your Divorce

/in //Tags: , , , , , , , , , by

Just because you are going through divorce does not mean you have to give up your privacy.  Yes, in traditional divorce, proceedings are open to the public.  Sure, most Florida divorce lawyers will tell you that you have to file your divorce in the county where you last resided with your spouse, making it easier for family, neighbors, and business competitors to snoop on you.  And, historically, you have been required to file financial affidavits in a court file that anyone can access.

Fortunately, there are alternatives to all of these issues to help maintain your privacy.

Collaborative Divorce – Private Negotiations

Collaborative Divorce is a private form of dispute resolution where discussions take place in discreet conference rooms or via Zoom rather than in a public courtroom.

In the Collaborative Process, you and your spouse each have your own, separate lawyers to provide each of you with independent legal advice.  Your lawyers are prohibited from fighting in court; if court action is needed, your Collaborative Lawyers are fired.  This aligns the incentives of both lawyers and both spouses to focus on reaching an agreement rather than stir up trouble and engage in costly trial work.  And the vast majority of Collaborative Divorce matters are able to reach a full resolution; about 92% of Collaborative matters we have been involved in have been successful.

Oftentimes, you and your spouse will have additional support in your Collaborative Divorce.  A neutral Collaborative Facilitator, who specializes in communication, family dynamics, and childhood development, will help you navigate and overcome the emotional impediments to divorce.  Additionally, if you have children, the Facilitator will help craft a parenting plan tailored to your kids’ needs rather than have a cookie-cutter parenting plan based on a bunch of legal factors.

Further, you may have a Financial Neutral on your Collaborative Divorce team.  We have found that many divorce discussions get stuck because one spouse just does not understand the family finances or fears they are being taking advantage of.  The Financial Neutral, who is typically a CPA or financial advisor, works with both spouses to efficiently gather needed financial information and help even the playing field so both of you can feel that you are making informed decisions.  This helps play a big role in getting through the “fight, flight, or freeze” instincts that can overtake a person going through divorce.

Choosing Where To File Your Divorce for Privacy

Most Florida divorce lawyers will tell you that you need to file your divorce in the county where you and your spouse last resided together.  And that is because most Florida divorce lawyers focus their practice on contested trial work; if you file a contested matter in the wrong venue, and your spouse objects, then you have to go through a costly legal fight and you may then need to pay to have your matter transferred to the “correct” county.

Read more →

Finalv3 Iacp Brand Collaborative Practice Primary - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law Firm

Applications for IACP Board Due February 18, 2024

/in //Tags: , by

The International Academy of Collaborative Professionals is accepting applications to join its Board.  If you are a professional who is interested, you can learn more and apply here (you will need to be logged in to your IACP account to apply).  The applications are due by February 18.

I have had the privilege of serving on the IACP Board since 2018, and my second and final term expires this year.  I am excited for those that will just be beginning their Board service journey.  Accordingly, here is my pitch to you:

Do you want to help shape the future of Collaborative Practice?  Then I would strongly urge you to consider applying to be a member of the IACP Board.  I think Collaborative Practice is still in its infancy, and in my experience the work that we do on the Board has far reaching effects for families and professionals around the world.  I found that I can make a difference, and so can you.

-Adam B. Cordover

Read more →

Transgender Name Change - Family Diplomacy | A Collaborative Law FirmFamily Diplomacy

Tampa Bay Times Publishes Cordover Letter on Transgender Matters

/in , , //Tags: , , , , by

Throughout my legal career, I have been proud to offer a warm and welcoming environment for anyone seeking services related to divorce (including Collaborative Divorce), adoption, name change, and other family law matters.  Pretty soon after opening my practice in 2010, I began working with transgender clients seeking to have their names changed.  Further along, I provided them instructions based on information given by various agencies and entities about how to change their gender marker (e.g., male or female) on birth certificates, driver’s licenses, passports, and social security documents, if they wish.

Why Does a Gender Marker Even Matter?

At first, I didn’t really understood the whole “gender marker thing.” After all, everyone has things we don’t like about ourselves, so why couldn’t transgender folks just live with the gender marker to which they were assigned at birth?

Read more →