Working Together to Resolve Divorce

The Orlando Sentinel posted an article today on Collaborative Divorce.  Collaborative divorce is an alternative way to resolve a divorce case without resorting to litigation. I was actually trained as a collaborative lawyer in 2001.  However, it has been slow to pick up steam in Alabama.  In fact, many divorce attorneys in Alabama that I have spoken to have expressed their reluctance to hanlde cases collaboratively. I think that will change.  As it becomes more common and more people find out about it, there will be a market demand for it.

The only real down side to collaborative divorce can be the expense. But, it is far less costly than a traditional adversarial divorce.

I have been working on something called the No Nonsense Divorce that I think will provide another viable option for families in Alabama trying to cope with divorce.  It is a way for divorcing couples to streamline the divorce process and to resolve their case for a fixed fee that is far less than would be incurred in litigation. I’ll be posting more about No Nonsense Divorce here as soon as we have all of the parts in place.

Until then, I encourage you to read the article linked above on Collaborative Divorce. It captures some of the same themes that I urge my clients to consider in the way we handle their divorce case.

Collaborative divorce is an alternative way for divorcing spouses to resolve their disputes without going to court. Although it is a relatively new approach, having only originated in the early 1990’s, it is quickly spreading throughout the country. The latest estimates are that there are approximately 200 different groups of lawyers that have joined together in associations to promotre and practice collaborative divorce. It seems like this might be an idea whose time has come.

For those of you that have had personal experiences in the collaborative divorce model, I welcome your feedback by direct e-mail or in the comments section. I am currently involved in a project to begin a collaborative divorce practice group in Alabama. As information on that effort develops, I will post about it here.