The Collaborative Practice Approach to Family Law
As I write and record this, most of us in Kentucky are now a good ways into who knows how many days or weeks of social distancing and other similar efforts to try and slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
As I have shared in previous posts, what that’s meant for those of us who are family court lawyers is we have mostly not been able to participate in court hearings, and neither have our clients, except in limited emergency circumstances.
This has led to many clients asking very reasonable questions about just exactly when their divorce or custody case might finally get wrapped up, especially if it involves a hearing in front of a judge.
The truth is, I don’t really know.
And the bigger truth is, I don’t really like having to give that answer.
So, I have been thinking of an alternative to clients and potential client who hope to address or resolve family conflict or crisis on a timeline sooner than the Court process can currentloffer.
That alternative I want to talk about in this video is what is called “collaborative divorce” or “collaborative practice” – – it’s normally focused on divorce, but can also apply to a custody proceeding between parents who were never married.
Here’s a very quick description: collaborative practice is a process where the spouses or parents each retain an attorney, and sign a special agreement to work together in a respectful, team-focused way to resolve their divorce or custody issues without going to court.
The emphasis in this process empowering the spouses or parents to decide how to resolve their important divorce or custody issues, in a healthy and respectful way, without asking judge to step in and decide for them.
I know this process has a number of big advantages to traditional divorce or custody litigation, and the most critical advantage for today’s message is this:
In most instances, it is far, far less time consuming than a traditional divorce, in terms of how efficiently you can complete the process, from start to finish.
That advantage is almost always true when comparing collaborative practice to traditional divorce or custody litigation, but I believe it is especially true now when the timing of court proceedings is so unpredictable.
It appears at this point Kentucky courts won’t reopen until late April, but it may be even later than that. Even when court’s do re-open, it’s reasonable to expect Court dockets are going to be very backed up, likely for months to come.
I think of it this way: have you ever tried to exit a crowded stadium after a ball game or concert, along with everyone else who was in the stadium? I think that same feeling is going to come to litigants and lawyers when our courts finally do re-open.
Looking now at collaborative practice could allow you to get your family conflict resolved far quicker than most of those cases that might otherwise proceed through the Courts. Why?
It’s because all the difficult issues are addressed and resolved in meetings that take place in lawyer’s offices, rather than in a Courtroom. So the timeline isn’t dependent on a judge’s hearing calendar which is already crowded and could soon be clogged with all the other cases that are currently on hold while courts are closed.
If you want to explore collaborative practice, you and your spouse or co-parent will need a specially trained lawyer to guide you in the process. The good news is, I am one of a handful of lawyers in Southcentral Kentucky who are trained and experienced in collaborative practice.
I can put my training and experience to use for you now, without waiting for courts to reopen. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more, I’d love to talk with you in detail to help determine whether collaborative practice might be a good fit for you situation.
We can do that through a video or telephone consultation, or an in-person consultation if you’d prefer that (and if local officials continue to allow law firms to deliver in-person services).
In the meantime, stay safe, stay healthy, and thank you for listening.
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