The Thirteenth Judicial Circuit of Florida recently issued an order giving guidance for the practice of collaborative family law in Hillsborough County. Chief Judge Manual Menendez, Jr., signed the order codifying procedures for the relatively new method of settling divorce issues.<\/p>\n
Collaborative divorce focuses on resolving disputes outside the courtroom, the open exchange of pertinent financial information, and the importance of common goals between the parties. This stands in stark contrast to the litigation-based method of divorce, in which the parties are often assumed to be completely adversarial and self-interested, with every reason to assign blame and be secretive.<\/p>\n
Each party in a collaborative divorce hires a collaboratively trained attorney and agrees to make every effort to resolve personal and financial disputes without a judge’s order. A neutral facilitator, often a mental health professional, but sometimes a trained mediator, is hired. The facilitator’s job is to keep discussions focused on conflict resolution and (more…)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Thirteenth Judicial Circuit of Florida recently issued an order giving guidance for the practice of collaborative family law in Hillsborough County. Chief Judge Manual Menendez, Jr., signed the order codifying procedures for the relatively new method of settling divorce…<\/span><\/p>\n