When a California parent decides to file for divorce, he or she no doubt understands that the decision is going to have a significant impact on his or her children’s lives. Because of this, many parents want to settle a divorce as swiftly and amicably as possible to minimize stress for themselves and their kids. A collaborative law divorce is a viable option to help accomplish such goals in many cases.
One of the first questions a spouse should consider when determining whether collaboration would be a good choice in a particular set of circumstances is whether both spouses are able to commit to avoiding confrontation and cooperating and compromising as needed to achieve a settlement agreement. To the contrary, if the answer is “no,” then it might be best to review other available options. The success of a collaborative law divorce hinges on both spouses commitments to avoid conflict and litigation.
The success rate of the collaborative process in divorce is excellent. In fact, approximately 90 percent of couples who choose this option are able to accomplish their goals without going to court. Each spouse retains his or her own attorney to provide support during negotiation sessions. Financial advisers, psychologists, property appraisers and others may add their testimonies to collaborative law sessions to assist in the development of property division and co-parenting agreements.
Any parent who wishes to avoid confrontation, secure settlement in as economically feasible a fashion as possible, and still protect his or her financial and parental rights may want to learn more about alternative dispute resolution. Finalizing a divorce through collaborative law is known to help California spouses save money as it is typically much less expensive than litigation. Not every family law attorney has experience in this area, so a spouse who wishes to consider the option will want to choose an attorney who does.