Tag Archive for: Sarasota

Sarasota Collaborative Divorce Office – We Moved!

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We are excited to share the new location of our Sarasota Collaborative Divorce Office.  Family Diplomacy: A Collaborative Law Firm is now located at 1858 Ringling Boulevard, Suite 110, Sarasota, Florida 34236.  Our beautiful new location is in the Bank of Tampa building right on the edge of Downtown Sarasota.  Our Sarasota office offers, among other services, Collaborative Divorce, Mediation, Prenuptial Agreement, Unbundled Legal Services, Adoption, and Legal Name Change.  We offer a warm, supportive environment for those in the LGBTQ+ community facing family law matters, as well as anyone else looking for private, amicable solutions  when facing tough decisions affecting your family.

Sarasota Collaborative Divorce Office

Our Sarasota office is available by appointment.  We also offer a discounted rate for those who do not feel the need to meet in person and are comfortable interacting via Zoom videoconferencing software, telephone, e-mail, and other virtual means.   This also enables us to represent clients throughout the State of Florida, regardless of location.  Family Diplomacy: A Collaborative Law Firm practices exclusively in out-of-court dispute resolution, because we care about Florida’s families.

Below are some pictures of our new Sarasota office (click a picture to enlarge):

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Family Diplomacy Opens Sarasota Office

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Family Diplomacy: A Collaborative Law Firm is proud to announce that we have opened an office in Sarasota, Florida, to better cater to families in Sarasota and Manatee Counties. We  practice exclusively in out-of-court dispute resolution because we recognize most families facing divorce and other family law matters want to move on with their lives as amicably as possible rather than engage in draining court battles.

And now you can meet us at our Sarasota office, located at 3277 Fruitville Road, Suite F2, Sarasota, Florida 34237.  We are also available to meet at our offices in Tampa and St. Petersburg, and we will continue to provide virtual services to help families throughout the State of Florida.

Collaborative Divorce in Sarasota

We focus on Collaborative Divorce, where you and your spouse work with specially-trained lawyers to reach agreements in a private and amicable setting.  Because divorce can be a traumatic time in your life, we work with Facilitators, trained mental health professionals, to aid in communication and creating a parenting plan tailored for your children’s developmental needs.  And we also work with Neutral Financial Professionals, to ensure that both spouses understand your family’s finances and develop options that meet your future financial goals.

Attorney Adam B. Cordover is a leader in Collaborative Divorce, having been president of the Next Generation Divorce practice group when it expanded into Sarasota and Manatee Counties.  He is a member of the Board of the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals and recipient of the inaugural Visionary Award from the Florida Academy of Collaborative Professionals.  He has also trained and led workshops for lawyers and other professionals around the U.S., Canada, Israel, France, and Brazil, and is co-author with Forrest S. Mosten of an American Bar Association book on Building A Successful Collaborative Family Law Practice (2018).

Other Sarasota Family Law Services

Family Diplomacy also provides other family law services, including:

  • Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements
  • Mediation
  • Legal Name Change
  • Adoption
  • Unbundled Legal Services
Contact Family Diplomacy to Learn How We Can Help You

Collaborative Divorce Consultation: I Will Meet With Both Spouses

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When prospective divorce clients call in my Tampa office and ask whether both spouses can attend a consultation, they are often relieved to learn that I am willing to meet with both spouses.  I did not always have this policy.  In fact, most Florida divorce attorneys refuse to allow both parties to attend a consultation together.

There is a strict prohibition against an attorney representing both parties to a divorce, and most lawyers want to avoid even the appearance of representing both spouses.

And I, like other attorneys, cannot represent both spouses.  But what I can do is invite divorcing spouses into my office and discuss with them the available process options.  Of course, I will talk with them about traditional litigation, which is the court battle that often comes to mind when people think about divorce.  I will bring up mediation, which is a great form of alternative dispute resolution that allows parties to come to an agreement, but which leaves open the door for their mediation attorneys to engage in detrimental litigation if a full settlement is not reached.

And I will talk about collaborative divorce, which is a voluntary, private process in which the parties and their attorneys agree from the very beginning that they do not want to engage in nasty, public court fights.  In fact, the spouses, who each will have their own individual attorney, sign a participation agreement that states that their attorneys must withdraw if the parties cannot come to an agreement.  Collaborative divorce has a success rate of nearly 90%, so this withdrawal clause hardly ever comes into play, but it allows clients to be open in negotiations without worrying that their spouse’s attorney is keeping an ear open for opposition research to use in trial later on.

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Collaborative Divorce Comes To Sarasota & Manatee Counties

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From Brian Pope, MBA, CDFA, and Cindy Barry, Esq.:

I am extremely pleased to announce that there is a new group in town!  The “Next Generation Divorce” group for the Twelfth Judicial Circuit has been formed as an expansion of “Next Generation Divorce” of Tampa Bay.

Next Generation Divorce

As the President of the Twelfth Judicial branch of the Next Generation Divorce group (Cindy Barry, not me), it is my sincere pleasure to extend an invitation to the bench and Bar of the Twelfth Judicial Circuit to attend a free presentation on collaborative law on February 6, 2014, from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.  in the Palm Room at the Sarabay Country Club located at 7011 Willow Street, Sarasota, Florida, 34243.  There will be a variety of complimentary Hors d’Ouerves and a cash bar available for libations.

Our guest speaker is the President of the Tampa Bay area “Next Generation Divorce”, Mr. Adam Cordover, Esq.   He will be sharing the successes of the collaborative law practices in the greater Tampa Bay area and answering questions on how to incorporate collaborative law into your practice.   Of course, there will be a social hour immediately following the presentation.

It is an exciting time as “Next Generation Divorce” is an active and professional group of Attorneys, Mental Health Professionals and Financial Professionals that have been collaboratively trained to help remove court cases from the traditional Court system.  You can visit our website at www.nextgenerationdivorce.com.

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Family Law Courtroom Etiquette in Sarasota, Manatee, and DeSoto Counties

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It’s always good to make a good impression when going into a Florida Family Law Court, and one of the best ways to make a good impression is to follow proper etiquette.  Fortunately, the Twelfth Judicial Circuit has published its Rules of Etiquette for Family Law cases in Sarasota, Manatee, and DeSoto Counties:

1. Be aware that the judges, general magistrates, hearing officers, or any other court personnel cannot give you legal advice. You may only obtain legal advice from an attorney. You may obtain general information from the Twelfth Judicial Circuit’s website at www.jud12.flcourts.org.

2. Arrive at least twenty (20) minutes before your hearing is scheduled to begin. There are unpredictable times when legal emergencies pressure the court to begin as early as possible. You should know that a judge may also dismiss your case if you are not present at the scheduled time.

3. All persons appearing before the court must dress in an appropriate manner. Shorts, hats, flip-flops, jeans, sneakers, tee shirts, and tank tops are not suitable for the courtroom.

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