by Lee Chabin, Esq. Divorce is hard on adults and children alike.  But, unlike adults, children have little or no say in what happens.  Even if you were not the one to initiate the divorce, no doubt there are many decisions you will get to (have to?) make, perhaps including whether to remain at your current job, and which neighborhood to live in.  Our kids, on the other hand, will live and attend school where we (or a judge) decide. None of us like to feel out of control, and where we can, it is wise to grant our children the power to make their own decisions – up to a point. Let’s take the example of a new home. Pretend that you have...

How does a new trainee break into Collaborative Practice?  How do Collaborative Practice and Mediation ‘relate’?  Is one necessary or sufficient for the other?  These questions are at the center of our discussion today.  Don’t forget to share your thoughts in the comment section below. Today’s Guests:   Carol Miller, LCPC   Downers Grove, IL   Profile   Kevin Scudder, JD   Seattle, WA   www.scudderlaw.net  (Would you like to join us for our next conversation? We’ll have room for up to four people. Sign up here for our email list.  We send out notices and details of when and how you can...

By Mark B. Baer, Esq. Like it or not, if there are children of the relationship (regardless of their age), the family still exists after the relationship ends.  The manner in which you end a relationship determines whether your family will be functional or dysfunctional from that day forward. Abraham Lincoln’s Notes for a Law Lecture dated July 1, 1850, provide in pertinent part as follows:  “Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often a real loser — in fees, expenses, and waste of time. As a peacemaker the lawyer has a superior opportunity of...

by Lee Chabin, Esq.              Every divorcing couple has a choice to make:  How will we get divorced?  What process shall we use? The answer can have tremendous repercussions, emotionally as well as financially for your children as well as for yourselves. In this column, I will discuss one process:  Litigation (going to court). Litigation is usually the most expensive, antagonistic and emotionally difficult process for ending a marriage.  I’m firmly convinced that many couples go this route when they don’t need to – and that they would choose otherwise if they fully understood what litigation involves; and the...

Lynda talks about several questions, including some submitted from our readers, such as What is IACP?  What does it do for its members?  How does it support the growth of CP around the world?  the growth into ‘other than divorce’ areas? If I’m not a professional, why should I care about IACP?  What can I get from a visit to the website?  Why should I care if my professional is a member or not? Have more questions?  Post them as a comment below and we’ll approach Lynda again as soon as she’s available.   Among the resources Lynda mentions as available on the IACP website is this video Collaborative...

Mediators know all too well that their clients can take positional stances that are hostile and effectively block the creative thinking necessary to reach an equitable settlement.  Positional stances taken by clients and their counsel are a natural result of the brain’s dual wiring for competition and cooperation. These processes are in-born; however, the competitive tendency is slightly stronger than the cooperative one and the parts of the brain used for each are protected in very different ways.  The competitive instinct is well protected between the temporal lobe and cerebral cortex hidden in the fold.  The cooperative tendency...

Guest Stacey Langenbahn has stepped out of her comfort zone big time.  She is offering Mediation services in a way that is uncommon on her home turf.  We discuss the elements of Collaborative Practice that contributed to her step.  And along the way, a little bit about the challenges of ‘standing out’.  [For reference, in her area Mediation is rarely if ever available except as a 'last effort' just before trial.  Stacey offers it PRE-court.] Today’s Guest:   Stacey Langenbahn Cooleyville, TX   www.divorcemediationtexas.com  (Would you like to join us for our next conversation? We’ll have room for up to four...