If both you and your spouse are interested in resolving your divorce cooperatively and openly, with a sincere commitment to work out the issues in a non-adversarial environment, then you would do well to consider Collaborative Divorce. While the process is not for everyone, the collaborative model is an effective way to get through divorce with less emotional stress.
Even if you and your spouse aren’t getting along, Collaborative Divorce may work for you if you are willing and able to put your personal feelings aside for the sake of resolving the issues in a mutually beneficial way. Particularly if you dedicate yourselves to negotiating solutions that are in the best interests of your children, the collaborative model is a good choice. And if you just don’t trust your spouse because of infidelity, or if you’re not familiar enough with the family finances, the collaborative professionals — lawyers, financial experts, child specialists, etc. — should be able to compensate for any power imbalance in your relationship and help keep the negotiations fair and equal.
Collaborative Divorce is less likely to work for divorcing couples in which at least one spouse has demonstrated bad faith to the other, or in which one is determined to “punish” the other or to “win”. In addition, some family-law experts don’t recommend it for marriages that include a history of serious alcohol or drug abuse, domestic violence, or mental-health issues.
Of course, it all depends on your individual case. You would be best to discuss it in a consultation with a lawyer to find out if Collaborative Divorce is right for you.
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