At Family Diplomacy: A Collaborative Law Firm, we work to help families resolve disputes without fighting in court. We do this via Collaborative Family Law Practice, mediation, and unbundled legal services. Most clients appreciate this approach, as we spare them from the trauma and expense of court battles.
A client recently left a review on our Google page. You can find that review below.
Family Diplomacy: A Collaborative Law Firm proudly announces the opening of an office in the heart of Downtown St. Petersburg. We do so on June 1, 2020, as we celebrate the tenth anniversary of our firm and the fifth anniversary of our dedication to resolve family disputes exclusively out of court.
Our new office is located at 475 Central Avenue, Suite 205, St. Petersburg, Florida 33701. We are in the historic S.H. Kress & Co. Building, situated on the corner of Central Avenue and 5th Street South. The Kress building was built in 1927, influenced by the Beaux-Arts movement, and served as a five and dime store until 1981. The building is located within the Downtown St. Petersburg Historic District, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 1, 2001.
We also maintain our office in Downtown Tampa, located at 412 E. Madison Street, Suite 824, Tampa, Florida 33602.
Additionally, we are accepting matters throughout Florida. Read more →
The urge for a more humane way to practice divorce law has hit Pinellas County. The days of pitting husband versus wife, mother versus father in an adversarial courtroom divorce have both attorneys and clients pining for a private, healthier alternative to deal with family law issues.
And so the Saint Petersburg Bar Association and Clearwater Bar Association have invited Adam B. Cordover, Esq., John L. Sullivan, IV, CDFA, and James B. Morris, Jr., Ph.D., to discuss the interdisciplinary collaborative divorce model at their annual Family Law Update. The 2014 Family Law Update is approved for 4.0 general continuing legal education hours and 3.5 hours for purposes of Marital and Family Law certification.
When you file a family law case in a Tampa Bay court that involves children (such as divorce, paternity, or modification of a parenting plan), you will get a standing notice or order which prescribes how parents should treat one another and their children.
For the most part, parents that utilize common sense and common courtesy should have no problem sticking to these standing requirements. Below are excerpts of the requirements in Pinellas County:
1. CONTACT WITH BOTH PARENTS; SHARED PARENTING:
1.1. Contact with both parents is generally in the children’s best interests. Children are entitled to “frequent and continuing contact with both parents when the parents separate or divorce” as a matter of law.
1.2 The “primary residential parent” has an “affirmative obligation to encourage and nurture a relationship between the children and the alternate residential parent.” A parent who restricts access of the children to the other parent and who does not encourage a relationship between the children and the other parent, perhaps should not be designated the “primary residential parent, ” as this is not acting in the children’s best interests and is not following the law.
1.3. In nearly all cases, the court orders “shared parental responsibility” of the children, which means co-parenting. The parents must confer with each other and agree on parenting decisions. Both parents must participate in all parenting decisions and work out their time sharing schedules. If the parents cannot agree on any issue, then the court will decide.
Tampa’s City Council recently approved the creation of a domestic partnership registry, which will be open to the public beginning June 25, 2012. The cities of Saint Petersburg, Clearwater, and Gulfport have followed Tampa’s lead, and will all soon have domestic partnership registries. The Tampa Bay Times writes:
[St. Petersburg’s] law…requires health care facilities to allow any registered domestic partner to visit their mate and make care decisions if their partner is incapacitated.
Since January, all hospitals receiving federal aid were required to allow domestic partners access to patients and the control of their care. A city registry would help local hospitals follow federal guidelines, said Jeannine Williams, an assistant city attorney.
On March 24, 2012, I was joined by friends and family to run Hillsborough County Bar Association’s Race to the Courthouse 5K as “Team Cordover.” The race began at Stetson University’s Tampa campus and benefitted pro bono services throughout Hillsborough County.
Front Row, L to R: Jake Biller, Marcy Biller, Jamie Gomez, Kasey Biller, Laurie Strauss, Jenn Ryerson, and Mike Biller
Back Row, L to R: T.J. Reese, George Melendez, Adam B. Cordover, Troy Finney, Nikki Finney, and Jacob Finney
I am especially proud of T.J. Reese, Jake Biller, and Jacob Finney. These Team Cordover members swept the category of males age 15-19, placing in first, second, and third place, respectively.
L to R: Jake Biller, T.J. Reese, and Jacob Finney
I recently had the opportunity to attend a joint meeting of the Tampa Bay Family Law Inn of Court and Pinellas County’s Canakaris Inn of Court. The guest speakers were three judges from Florida’s Second District Court of Appeals: Chris Altenbernd, Edward C. LaRose, and Robert Morris. I had the opportunity to discuss collaborative divorce with the appellate judges. The following excerpt of a Collaborative Divorce Institute of Tampa Bay article describes a portion of the meeting and my discussions:
Judge Chris Altenbernd (who served as chief judge from 2003-2005) observed that, by the time divorce and paternity cases reach the appellate level, both parties have almost invariably already lost:
“You have families that are being torn apart, and the parties are arguing often for the sake of arguing, not putting children’s issues and the families’ financial future first.”
Judges Edward C. LaRose and Robert Morris agreed.
The Second D.C.A.’s Judge Chris Altenbernd and CDITB Membership Chair Adam B. Cordover Discuss Collaborative Divorce (April 4, 2012)
Judge LaRose then asked the attorneys in the audience whether collaborative practice was being utilized in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. Collaborative Divorce Institute of Tampa Bay membership chair Adam B. Cordover answered their question. “The practice of collaborative family law is growing in Tampa Bay. Last year, the Collaborative Divorce Institute of Tampa Bay provided training to instruct more attorneys, mental health professionals, and financial experts on how to handle collaborative divorce cases in a way that is private, individually-tailored, respectful, and takes into account the best interests of any children involved. In short, we collaborative professionals are carrying out the ideal of ‘therapeutic jurisprudence.’”
Judge Altenbernd later relayed to Mr. Cordover that he supports the collaborative process, especially in divorce cases where issues of child custody and parenting plans are involved. ”I just think more people need to seriously consider the family-focused process of collaborative divorce rather than fight it out in the court system.”
Attorney Adam B. Cordover has completed advanced training in interdisciplinary collaborative family law. He is on the Board of the Collaborative Divorce Institute of Tampa Bay and is a member of the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals.
If you have questions regarding collaborative divorce and you wish to speak with a Tampa Bay collaborative attorney, contact The Law Firm of Adam B. Cordover, P.A., at (813) 443-0615 or by completing our online form.
The Pasco County, Florida, Clerk of the Court has posted Administrative Order 2011-032 PA/PI-CIR, which describes the holiday schedule for the Sixth Judicial Circuit in and for Pasco and Pinellas Counties:
RE: COURT HOLIDAYS – 2012
In accordance with the State Courts System Personnel Regulations, the following will be official court holidays for the Sixth Judicial Circuit in 2012.
NEW YEAR’S HOLIDAY Monday, January 2
MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. DAY Monday, January 16
GOOD FRIDAY Friday, April 6
MEMORIAL DAY Monday, May 28
| I thought I would share the following message I received from the Partners for Life Police Appreciation Run. I completed the 10K, which followed the waterfront and downtown streets of Saint Petersburg and was held in memory of fallen police officers Jeff Yaslowitz, Tom Baitinger, and Dave Crawford. | ||||
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Partners for Life
On May 15, 2011, I participated in the Inaugural Police Appreciation Run. This event, which was dedicated to officers who had fallen in the line of duty this past winter, started from North Straub Park in St. Petersburg, Florida, and continued along the waterfront and throughout the downtown area. I completed the 10K in around 1 hour and 13 minutes, which is officially the longest and farthest I have ever run without stopping or walking.
The following is a report from ABC Action News, one of the sponsors of the event, which discusses the race and Officer Jeff Yaslowitz, Sergeant Tom Baitinger, and Officer Dave Crawford:
You may donate to Partners For Life Foundation, which was established by Lorraine Yaslowitz, at the following link: http://www.active.com/donate/PartnersForLife.
