When you are going through divorce – a time of great hurt and vulnerability – the last thing you want is to have your pain on public display. And yet that is exactly what happens if you and your spouse chose to go through the traditional divorce court process. You have no divorce privacy.
It would not be uncommon for you and your spouse to file allegations against each other in the public court record questioning each other’s parenting skills. You often have to publicly display in response to written questions any personal belonging you have valued at $100 or more. Under cross-examination, you may have to justify, in a courtroom available to anyone who wants to watch, your grocery bill, haircut/beauty parlor expenditures, donation to religious organizations and/or charities, and medicinal needs.
Fortunately, there are processes that allow divorce privacy. One such process is Collaborative Divorce.
Collaborative Divorce Privacy
In Collaborative Divorce, you and your spouse have separate, independent lawyers. The lawyers are there solely for the purpose of helping you, privately, reach an out-of-court agreement. The law prohibits your Collaborative Lawyers from engaging in contested public court hearings.
All negotiations are had in private conference rooms (or secure videoconferencing platforms). Generally, nothing is filed with the court until you and your spouse have reached a full resolution of all issues. And, even then, the type and amount of information that does get filed can be greatly minimized.
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