COLLABORATIVE DIVORCE AND FAMILY LAW IN FLORIDA. No matter how you look at it, divorce and family law matters are difficult to go through. Expectations of stability are shattered,

mistrust grows, and bills pile up. And then the litigation begins. Attorneys file and serve petitions, counterpetitions, requests to produce, and motions to compel. Each party hires dueling mental health experts to convince a judge that he or she should have more time with the children. Privacy is eliminated as each party’s life is probed and publicly questioned so that one side may gain a tactical advantage.

But there is a different way. A more civilized way. And it is called Collaborative Family Law (also known as Collaborative Divorce or Collaborative Practice).

We are a Collaborative law firm dedicated to helping people resolve personal disputes without destroying their families. We encourage the use of the Collaborative Family Law model in divorce, child custody, child support, alimony, post-judgment, prenuptial, and most other family law cases. Further, Adam B. Cordover is an internationally-recognized leader in Collaborative Practice, a trainer who teaches other professionals how to help families Collaboratively, and author of an upcoming American Bar Association book on Collaborative Law.

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Statistics on Collaborative Divorce in Florida (1/31/2018 Update)

May 26, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce /by Adam

In 2010, the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals (IACP) released the results of a 4 year study on Collaborative Practice. The results were based on information gathered from collaborative professionals who filled out a survey at the end of their case. The IACP Research Committee collected 933 surveys from throughout the United States and Canada, 97% of which were for divorce cases.

Remarkably, the IACP found that 86% of collaborative cases ended in a full resolution of all issues, while an additional 2% ended in reconciliation between the clients. Of those cases that terminated prior to a full agreement, 14% included a partial agreement between the clients, narrowing the issues that needed to be addressed.

In the aftermath of this research project, the IACP offered grants to local and statewide practice groups so that they could begin gathering data. The Florida Academy of Collaborative Professionals (FACP), an organization of over 500 independent collaborative professionals throughout the state of Florida, applied for IACP’s Gay Cox grant (named after a pioneer of the Collaborative Law Movement and proponent of research on the topic, who passed in 2013). The IACP approved the FACP’s grant request.

The results below are based on 101 responses, collected between December 16, 2013, and January 31, 2018. The authors note that data collection is ongoing, and encourage all professionals to complete and submit one survey at the end of each collaborative case. Surveys can be accessed and submitted via the member-only portal of the FACP website (http://collaborativepracticeflorida.com). For questions on the survey or accessing the members-only portal, professionals are encouraged to contact the authors.

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Review: A Clear and Easy Guide to Collaborative Divorce

May 22, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: collaborative divorce, collaborative divorce training, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practiceby Adam

There are a lot of great books out there on collaborative divorce. Some, like Forrest S. Mosten’s Collaborative Divorce Handbook: Helping Families without Going to Court and Pauline Tesler’s Collaborative Law: Achieving Effective Resolution in Divorce without Litigation, are geared towards divorce professionals. Others, like Stu Webb and Ron Ousky’s The Collaborative Way to Divorce: The Revolutionary Method That Results in Less Stress, Lower Costs, and Happier Kids – Without Going to Court and Joryn Jenkin’s War or Peace: Avoid the Destruction of Divorce, are geared towards families considering divorce.

A new offering is helpful for both professionals and families. Enter Dr. Jeremy S. Gaies’ A Clear and Easy Guide to Collaborative Divorce.

Dr. Gaies is a psychologist and collaborative facilitator/coach in Tampa, Florida. Full disclosure: He also teaches attorneys, mental health professionals, financial professionals, and mediators how to offer families collaborative services through the Tampa Bay Collaborative Trainers, a group in which I am also a trainer.

Video: Betty Discusses Her Collaborative Divorce

March 14, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, collaborative financial professional, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, dissolution of marriage, divorceby Adam

Choosing how you go through divorce can be a harrowing experience. Sometimes it is helpful to hear how others have chosen to divorce. In the video below, from the Tampa Bay Academy of Collaborative Professionals, Betty discusses her collaborative divorce:

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Mediation Compared to Collaborative Divorce

March 13, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce, Mediation //Tags: collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, collaborative financial professional, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, dissolution of marriage, divorce, mediationby Adam

There has been a growing recognition over the past few decades that courtroom divorce, an adversarial process that pits husband against wife, is a dreadful and harmful method to resolve family disputes. As a result, the Florida Supreme Court, like many other judicial bodies, declared that family matters needed “a system that provided nonadversarial alternatives and flexibility of alternatives; a system that preserved rather than destroyed family relationships;…and a system that facilitated the process chosen by the parties.” In re Report of the Family Law Steering Committee, 794 So. 2d 518, 523 (Fla. 2001).

Two alternatives that have developed to fill this space are mediation and collaborative divorce. As collaborative divorce is a relatively new option, and there exists much confusion – even among experienced family law practitioners – about the differences between these two methods of dispute resolution, this article looks to compare and contrast mediation and collaborative divorce.

Event versus Process

Mediation is generally a one-time meeting where the parties come together, along with a mediator, to attempt to settle disputes. In Florida, the parties’ attorneys are also in the room, though other jurisdictions exclude attorneys. The mediator is a neutral actor who does not have the power to force the parties into any type of settlement, but can only encourage them to reach an agreement. A mediation conference will generally last from 3 to 8 hours or more. If the parties cannot reach an agreement in that meeting, then they tend to go to court, usually multiple times.

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Video: Collaborative Divorce Founder Stu Webb

March 8, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative family law, collaborative financial professional, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, dissolution of marriage, divorce, stu webbby Adam

Collaborative divorce as a form of out-of-court dispute resolution has been around since 1990, but it did not just magically appear. Minnesota family law attorney Stu Webb decided he was fed up with the traditional adversarial court system. And he decided to do something about it.

In the video below, Henry Yampolsky of the Living Peace Institute interviews collaborative divorce founder Stu Webb:

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Divorce Need Not Destroy Your Small Business

March 5, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, collaborative financial professional, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, dissolution of marriage, divorce, equitable distribution, Florida Statutes, small businessby Adam

Running a small business is tough enough. Running a small business while your marriage is falling apart can be crushing. But you don’t need to go through a traditional court battle if divorce is on the horizon. Your business does not need to be a casualty. There is an alternative. There is collaborative divorce.

Small Business & Privacy

Collaborative divorce is a form of out-of-court dispute resolution that values privacy. This means that your client lists, inventory details, and other trade secrets remain safely away from public court records. In fact, here in Florida, the Collaborative Law Process Act and accompanying rules safeguard most communications had within a collaborative divorce. Courts now have authority to sanction a party who reveals a collaborative law communication.

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Tampa Collaborative Training Registration Now Open

February 7, 2018/in Training, Collaborative Divorce /by Adam

It has been less than one year since Florida’s Collaborative Law Process Act has gone into effect. Now is a perfect time to take a Two-Day Introductory Interdisciplinary Tampa Collaborative Training!

Click Here to Register!

Next Generation Divorce and Tampa Bay Academy of Collaborative Professionals are co-sponsoring the training to teach more professionals how to help families peacefully and privately to resolve their disputes. The training will be conducted by the Tampa Bay Collaborative Trainers.

When:

Friday, April 6: Sign-in, continental breakfast and networking
- 7:30 am
Friday, April 6: Training
- 8:30 am to 5 pm
Saturday, April 7: Training
- 9:00 am to 5 pm

Discernment Counseling: What If Only One Spouse Wants to Divorce?

January 24, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: collaborative divorce, couple's counseling, discernment counseling, marital mediation, therapyby Adam

Are you leaning towards divorce but your spouse is not? Have you tried couple’s counseling but found that the pressure was all on you to change? Do you want a time-limited, non-adversarial way to help you and your spouse determine whether it is time to divorce? If so, you should look into discernment counseling.

Discernment counseling is a way for “mixed agenda” couples to determine what is next. Mixed agenda refers to the frequent scenario where one spouse is leaning out of the marriage and the other is leaning in. The couple comes together with a counselor to talk and determine whether they want to repair their marriage or divorce.

Hear from the Founder of Discernment Counseling

Dr. Bill Doherty, the founder of discernment counseling, discusses the method in the video below:

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Mosten: Is Your Divorce Lawyer Informing You?

January 22, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce, Mediation, Unbundled Legal Services //Tags: collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, mediation, mediator, unbundled legal servicesby Adam

If you are considering divorce, you likely think that whether you can have an amicable or collaborative divorce depends wholly on your spouse. Certainly, the attitude and ability of your spouse to compromise has an effect, but in my experience the attorneys that you and your spouse choose has a much bigger impact.

Beginning A Litigation Divorce

If you and your spouse choose attorneys whose primary orientation is litigation, then there is a good chance that you will face a court battle. Your litigation attorney will likely draft a petition for dissolution of marriage asking for everything, and then have a process server or sheriff’s officer serve your spouse. These tactics are all intended to intimidate your spouse and get them to submit.

It should be no surprise that this usually elicits the opposite of the intended response. Not willing to submit, your spouse hires a “bulldog lawyer,” and the battle is on. Say goodbye to your children’s college saving. Know that this money will now be going to your lawyers’ children’s college tuition.

Fortunately, there is a different way.

Video: Tiger Woods, Privacy, and Collaborative Divorce

January 17, 2018/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: celebrity divorce, collaborative child specialist, collaborative divorce, collaborative family law, Collaborative Law, collaborative practice, dissolution of marriage, divorce, private divorceby Adam

In 2012, as news of Tiger Woods’ extramarital affairs and his wife’s reaction repeated on TV broadcasts and magazines throughout the world, some professionals stood up and said it does not need to be this way. You can maintain your privacy and dignity in your family law matter. You can utilize the collaborative divorce process.

In the video below, Psychologist Ellie Izzo, author of The Bridge to I am: Rapid Advance Psychotherapy and co-author with Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Vicki Carpel Miller of Second Hand Shock: Surviving and Overcoming Vicarious Trauma, discusses collaborative divorce in the wake of the Tiger Woods divorce: