Courtless Divorce

Holding Hands and Helping Clients

I was going through my firm’s old files the other day when I came across a thank-you note written by a former client. I am a paralegal at Family Diplomacy: A Collaborative Law Firm and work with attorney Adam B. Cordover. The client thanks both Adam and me in the note, and, although I am…

Yelling “Fire!” in a Crowded Movie Theatre

You’ve been waiting for this movie to come out. Finally, it does. You buy your overpriced tickets on-line; you show up early to get a good seat; you pay a fortune for popcorn; you watch endless coming attractions. Finally, the feature begins. Sooner or later, you realize it’s awful. You wait for it to improve,…

Senate Bill 972: The “Family Law Process Act”

Senate Bill 972, the “Family Law Process Act,” has cleared its first committee in the Florida Senate. It will hopefully pass this summer and officially take effect on July 1, 2016. The Act facilitates an alternate dispute resolution process, collaborative divorce, which allows couples to separate or end their marriages without submitting their dispute to…

Press Release: Managing Your Collaborative Practice

IT’S THIS FRIDAY! Press Release: Managing Your Collaborative Practice On January 22, 2016, Joryn Jenkins, a collaborative attorney and author of War or Peace, I Never Saw My Father Again, and A Free Divorce Handbook, will present her inaugural collaborative staff training, Open for Business, Managing Your Collaborative Practice for Passion and Profit in sunny Tampa,…

The New Year is Here!

If your New Year’s Resolution was to get a divorce, do it peacefully; Collaborate! Divorce filings are historically low for the month of December due to parties not wanting to disrupt this time of year for their children. You felt the same way; you kept the peace through the holidays but now it is time…

Smiling Divorce Selfie?

Can divorce really be that pleasant? You may be familiar with the smiling “divorce selfie” that went viral (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/09/03/couples-smiling-divorce-selfie-goes-viral/71633438/). This photo featured Chris and Shannon Neuman, a Canadian couple, who explained that they “respectfully, thoughtfully and honourably ended our marriage in a way that will allow us to go forward as parenting partners” for the…

Hope for the Holidays Despite Divorce.

There’s hope this year if you choose collaborative law to handle your separation. The holidays are upon us; soon it will be a new year. You have shelved the topic of divorce in order to keep the holidays peaceful for your family and friends but now it’s time to take a deep breath, and start…

Peace for the Holidays with Collaborative Divorce

Peace is possible when you choose collaborative divorce. The holidays; this is a wonderful time of the year, is it not? Because you, and your spouse, chose the collaborative divorce process to work through the windup of your marriage, you can enjoy the holidays with your children, with your restructured family, and your friends. All…

The Best Way to Get Divorced: War or Peace

Family lawyers cause families more pain and cost them more money than any other cog in the traditional divorce process. Most do not do it on purpose (although some do), but that they do it is undeniable. I’ve practiced law for 35 years. I’ve made a spectacular living as the consummate trial attorney, and I…

Beginning a Collaborative Divorce – Once Neutrals Are Retained

How does the Collaborative Divorce Process move forward after you’ve chosen your neutral team members? Once the neutrals have been retained for the collaborative divorce process, each client meets with the facilitator to discuss his or her goals, issues, concerns, and relationship history. The facilitator prepares a written report of the interviews for the team…