What is the Purpose of Florida Family Law?

Anyone who has gone through a divorce, paternity, or other family law proceeding in Hillsborough County or elsewhere in Florida may have wondered: What is the purpose of Florida Family Law?

Well, section 61.001(2) purports to have an answer:

Its purposes are:

(a) To preserve the integrity of marriage and to safeguard meaningful family relationships;

(b) To promote the amicable settlement of disputes that arise between parties to a marriage; and

(c) To mitigate the potential harm to the spouses and their children caused by the process of legal dissolution of marriage.

However, anybody that has let a judge decide how to handle their marital issues will probably tell you that Florida is failing to meet its stated goals.  We have very good judges, but the system is, simply put, broken.

But there is an alternative.  Collaborative divorce is a private divorce process where the parties agree that their attorneys will be used solely to help them reach an agreement, and not to battle it out in a courtroom setting.  Parties utilize the expertise of outside experts, such as communication facilitators and financial professionals, as needed to ensure transparency and that the parties are focused on the future, rather than arguments of the past.  Parties agree to treat one another, and their family members, with respect, and further agree not to waste their money on costly litigation games.

The collaborative process can also be used in non-divorce family law matters, such as to help resolve paternity, custody, child support, and other issues.

If you want to learn about how the collaborative divorce and family law process can help you and your family, schedule a consultation with Family Diplomacy at (813) 443-0615 or fill out our contact form.