Family Diplomacy managing attorney Adam B. Cordover has been certified by the Florida Supreme Court as a Family Mediator. Certification is reserved for those who meet the Florida Supreme Court’s qualifications, attend a 40-hour mediation course, and engage in observations and co-mediations for training purposes.
While Collaborative Divorce began in the United States in 1990 when Minnesota family law attorney Stu Webb declared that he would no longer take any new litigated cases, it has spread throughout the world to provide spouses with a private, respectful method to separate.
One such place that it has spread is Israel, where a practice group named “L’Hitgaresh B’Shalom” based out of Tel Aviv is teaching Israelis how they can constructively restructure their families. L’Hitgaresh B’Shalom roughly translates as “The Peaceful Divorce,” “To Divorce in Peace,” or “Divorcing Peacefully.” In a region that is oftentimes in the midst of physical battles, it is amazing that there are professionals who are attempting to insulate families from the destruction of court battles.
Lately, as a member of Next Generation Divorce, one of the nation’s largest collaborative practice groups, I have had the opportunity to appear on Money Talk 1010’s Let’s Talk Law program. Those programs will be on the web shortly.
In the meantime, you can find a 60 second commercial on Next Generation Divorce and the collaborative process below.
Every family law attorney has met parents who simply do not seem to get along. One parent says yes, the other automatically says no. Mom says the sky is blue, while dad says mom is just plain wrong.
I strongly encourage parents who have a toxic relationship to attend high conflict diversion classes. One such class is taught by Shaun Hoyle, who has undergone collaborative training and is the owner of Life Lessons of Manasota, Inc.
A Tampa Bay family law client of mine recently left a review of Family Diplomacy’s services on Avvo.com. You can find the review after the jump.
FLORIDA BAR DISCLAIMER: Please note that every case is different, and you may not receive the same or similar results.
The Tampa Tribune is reporting that Pope Francis has reformed the process by which many Catholics receive annulments from the church. The reforms take a process that oftentimes took well over and year and, in many cases, shortens that length down to 45 days.
One of the reforms does a way for the need of an exhaustive investigation when both spouses request the annulment (or neither actively opposes it).
If you have minor children and are going through a divorce or paternity matter in Florida, then someone is likely going to have to pay child support to the other parent. Child support by default is paid through the Central Governmental Depository and State Disbursement Unit, which is a system for the courts to ensure that child support is being paid.
Usually, a judge will sign an Income Withholding Order that is sent to the payor’s employer. The employer will automatically deduct the child support from the payor’s paycheck, and then send the payment to the State Disbursement Unit (“SDU”). The SDU makes a record of the payment, and then sends the child support payment via debit card to the payee.
But, if you are receiving child support in Florida, you can choose to get it via direct deposit.
Collaborative professionals around the country and, indeed, around the world are getting the word out that there is a better alternative to traditional divorce court battles: Collaborative Divorce.
In the video below, New Jersey attorney Linda Piff has a great short video that provides a brief overview of the collaborative process.
If you are considering divorce, whether here in Florida or elsewhere, and you are doing online research about family law attorneys, you will come across many firms that describe their attorneys as “aggressive” and “ready to fight for you.”
You will not find that type of language on Family Diplomacy’s website, as we believe that spouses should not be pitted against one another, and family issues should be resolved via the collaborative process in private offices rather than public courtrooms. And yet, we concede that our approach may not be for everyone.
So, when should you look elsewhere for an “aggressive” divorce lawyer?
Caitlyn Jenner’s transition and reality TV show has raised awareness about transgender issues. However, for many Floridians, there are still a lot of questions. Some basic questions are: What do you call a transgender person? Which pronouns do you use?
PrideHealth, which is an organization out of Canada that “provides safe and accessible primary health care services for people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (GLBTIQ),” has produced a video to help answer these questions.
Though the video is directed to healthcare providers, it is helpful for legal services providers and anyone who does not want to alienate potential trans clientele.
