When two people marry, the feeling is one of pleasant thoughts and a lifetime of hope for the future….as it rightfully should be.   A simple marriage contract is signed by both parties without ever a real thought about the possibility of divorcing.  Statistically speaking, divorce occurs in 50% of first marriages and 60% of second marriages.1 What is even more unfortunate is that the emotional, financial, and legal process of divorce that the (once in love) couple can find themselves in, is anything but pleasant or hopeful.  “On its best day the family law system in this country is ‘inefficient’; on its average day it is ‘uncaring’; and on...

     Members of the clergy are a significant segment of society often called upon by, and indirectly involved with divorcing parties and their families.  The authors assembled an article to inform  both the clergy and their members about the collaborative divorce process. Since none of us are members of the clergy, we conducted a small focus group survey to gain a better understanding of their perspective and concerns.   The survey was conducted to obtain direct input on clerical concerns surrounding the divorce process, not for the purpose of statistical relevance.   We interviewed six individuals from varying denominations and religious...

In which Sherrie R. Abney, Esq. shares her experience of bringing the principles of Collaborative Practice to Pakistan. “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his  point of view –until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” –Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mocking bird The American View            Everyone was a little apprehensive.  It was May 7, 2011, and we were preparing to meet ten visitors from Pakistan that the U.S. State Department had brought to Dallas, Texas, to learn about peace keeping and conflict resolution.  Five days earlier the United States Navy Seals had killed Osama Bin Laden...

What Can We Learn About Making Collaborative Law Work By Thinking About When It Won’t? William A. Wilson, Esq. INTRODUCTION Practitioners of collaborative law, whether lawyers, financial experts or mental health professionals, have an emotional and psychological bias toward the ideology, process and types of outcomes associated with collaborative practice. But not every dispute, and not every party in a dispute, is appropriate for collaborative practice.  This article will discuss some examples of situations where collaborative practice will not work- and in so doing, attempt to shed light on when it will. As a preliminary matter, let’s...

by: Kimberly Fauss, Esq. As Collaborative professionals become more adept through mastery of interest-based skills, we seek to expand our understanding of the underlying reasons clients respond (or not) to the challenges of self-determination. The centrality of relationship founded in trust, both between a professional and client as well as between and among teams of Collaborative colleagues, reveals a key to durable solutions we can craft together. The real challenge of Collaborative work ultimately rests with the personal commitment of the Collaborative professional. The internal change we undergo as professionals working together is the...