Collaborative Divorce Services Out-Of-Court Alternatives
Collaborative divorce involves two clients and two attorneys who work together to reach a fair settlement of all the issues with the understanding that the case will not go to court. Both spouses and their attorneys sign a stipulation agreeing to collaboration. Once the stipulation is signed, the attorneys may not engage the court on behalf of the spouse they are representing. If a collaborative divorce process is ended by either party and the case enters the court system, the collaborative attorneys may not represent the spouses in court.
Divorce Helpline works with couples interested in a collaborative divorce assistance in several ways. We can provide each spouse with a collaborative divorce lawyer to help them work toward issues such as division of assets, support and custody issues in order to reach an out-of-court settlement. We can also provide an attorney-mediator or private judge. Finally, we can work with an outside attorney who wishes to provide collaborative divorce representation and provide an attorney for the unrepresented spouse, as well as a mediator or private judge to facilitate the process.
A collaborative divorce may also include other specialists to help with issues such as forensic accounting, pension valuation, child custody, taxes and more. These specialists often serve as expert witnesses in the courtroom setting, and can provide neutral third party input without the additional costs that occur when they are called to testify in court.
Collaborative divorce is similar to mediation in that it takes place outside of the court process, but it is different from mediation in that each party has their own attorney who can advise them separately and meet with them individually.
Collaboration is more expensive than mediation, but may still save you thousands of dollars and be far less time-consuming that a litigated divorce.
Learn more about our California Collaborative Divorce services by speaking with one of our attorneys at 1-800-359-7004.