Articles about Mediation and Collaborative Divorce

Mediation can help parents make decisions about their child's school.

Oregon parents need to remember that they may need to support their adult children attending school.

Four ways that a consulting attorney can help a client prepare for divorce mediation and support the process, to lead to better outcomes.

Parenting plans should be written and comprehensive. There are many benefits, incluiding stability for the children and opportunities for the parents to have an established baseline that will allow the parents to avoid ambiguities and frustration.

Grandparents and their relationships with their grandchildren should not be collateral damage in a divorce. Mediation can help maintain or rebuild relationships between the grandparents and parents for the benefit of the grandchildren.

Oregon engourages clients to mediate child support to ensure ongoing support of children. One consideration that may be necessary to mediate is what is income, since that drives the calculation. This is especially important for clients with fluctuating incomes as well as underemployed or unemployed clients.

A mediated pre-marital agreement can protect both clients from unreasonable expectations during the marriage. It should be part of the marriage planning for any newly engaged couple.

Divorce limits choices and it can be hard to find the ability to find self-determination options during the divorce process. Both mediation and collaborative divorce provide options to allow clients to make difficult decisions that is best for them and their family.

Divorce can be difficult for children. There are many ways that parents can help a child get through a divorce in an emotionally healthy way. Here are three (or four) ways that parents can support their child through a divorce. First, parents need to do what they can to work together to be consistent with their children. Second, parents can respect each other’s time with the children, and third parents ensure that the children do not perceive themselves as carrying the burden of the parent’s relationship. Finally, parents should use their team to support the children’s emotional health.

There are several ways to distribute personal property between the clients during the mediation or collaborative divorce.

It is important to have a team to support you during a divorce - including professionals and friends and relatives. Each has a specific role. Divorcing clients should know who can be on their team to support them both as a couple and individually.

People in crisis, especially when facing divorce or other family conflicts, look to lawyers to help them through the experience. What should you think about when hiring a lawyer to help you As a Collaborative Divorce attorney.

During a recent mediation, a husband came in emotionally conflicted. I could see that he was angry, but unsure about why. He called for the divorce. But then he saw his soon to be ex-wife on a date with another man. The husband kept telling me and his ex-wife during the mediation that he was gl...

I was sitting in a coffee shop when I overheard a young adult discussing her recent trip back home. She said she had a great time but was frustrated by will the need to balance the time between her divorced mom and dad. Even though they had been divorced for years, it was clear that she was sti...

The holidays season can be difficult for anyone who recently divorced or is going through a divorce. If you stack divorce on top of the already stressful holiday season, it can become even more difficult for the entire family.  There is also the emotional impact of not having your children with...

Misconception #1:  There is a relationship between parenting time and child support payments. There is not a connection between parenting time and child support. Parenting time is the time that a parent spends with the children. This could range from several nights a week to several hours a week...

Many thanks to my good friends at the Mosten Guthrie Academy, who first posted this article on October 13, 2021. Mediation is a powerful tool that can be used to resolve conflict and prepare for conflict. This blog looks at three ways that mediation can be used by families to help prepare before conflict ever arises: addressing parenting plans to meet the needs of the children, preparing emergency parenting kits, and for prenuptial agreements before marriage.

One of the first questions people ask when getting divorced is, "how are child support and spousal support determined?" People want to know what they can rely on to ensure that they are paying their bills monthly. In this blog, I guide you through how child support and spousal support are deter...

Divorce is hard on families, but hardest on children. This is why it's important for parents to work on supporting the needs of children during a divorce. Each child is different, so it is up to the parents to be empathetic to the child as they transition from living in a household where the fam...

I recently listened to The Hidden Brain podcast, episode "Empathy Gym," from July 2019. The guest was Psychologist Jamil Zaki, who talked about his parent's divorce that took four years when he was between ages 8-12. He spoke about trying to live in each of his parent's homes. "Bouncing between h...

A judge in a divorce case involving child expects at least some identified parenting plan before entering a judgment of divorce created during a Mediation or Collaborative Divorce. For the benefit of the whole family, including the child and the parents, the more specific the parents can make the...

Clarity Law LLC charges a flat fee for mediations and representation during a Collaborative Divorce to help clients know at least some of the costs of the divorce process and receive support during the divorce process, which can be much more efficient and supportive than going it alone.

For many families, the primary residence is usually one of the most significant assets. In Oregon, for many divorcing couples, their primary source of property to be split fairly and equitably is the home residence. Unfortunately, this can be a difficult and emotional experience. It is essential ...

Litigation is a top down approach to distribution of spousal support, where the attorneys make recommendations based on what anticipate a judge might decide. Collaborative Divorce and mediation empower you to work with your spouse on an appropriate amount of spousal support.