Divorce Procedures n Legally valid reasons for divorce

Divorce Procedures n Legally valid reasons for divorce: n No Fault – most common n Marital Offence

Divorce Proceedings § One year period § Reconciliation implications >90 days § Advantage of no fault § Uncontested divorce

Marital Offences n Marital offense 3 Types: adultery physical cruelty mental cruelty

Financial Disclosure § Financial disclosure § § Find possible errors § § legally all financial information required Often missed with lawyers Look at regular habits § Patterns reveal a lot

Financial Scenario Reports n Identify tax consequences n Identify reality projecting forward n Inform of results due to positional issues

Marriage/Cohabitation Agreements n n Offers a method of opting out of Government Acts Able to do in contemplation of marriage n Just not under duress or the eve of the wedding

Traditional Separation/Divorce Process n n n Lawyers use the courts as a weapon Legal training to date has been mainly adversarial Old habits and stereo types remain

Roadblocks n Adversarial approach causes deeper issues n Battle lines get drawn n Communication is on too many levels n Clients become stuck on issues easily

Alternatives to Court n Arbitration n Mediation n Collaborative Divorce

Arbitration n Used when strict privacy is needed n Arbitrators are often retired Judges n May be binding or not (clients choose) n May cost less than traditional procedure

Mediation n Uses a neutral 3 rd party n Mediator act as a facilitator n Mediators do not control, advise or counsel n Be careful –Not all mediators have accreditation

Mediation n Assist to have conversations for negotiation Assist to create a draft agreement Two lawyers must be used to review and advise on the agreement to be valid

Collaborative Divorce n New method of dispute resolution n Using a team of expert professionals n § Complete disclosure of all facts by all parties No court or the process ends for all parties

Collaborative Law n n Lawyers specially trained in this facet of law Work to find solutions that both their client & exspouse are satisfied with for the family Legal advice & advocacy are still present Lawyers Work for clients but as a team & facilitators not warriors

Collaborative Practice n n n Involves a team of professionals Lawyers Chartered Financial Divorce Specialists Mental Health Professionals + others – accountant, business valuator, child specialist, appraisers, etc.

Collaborative Practice n Participation agreement – a must n All parties must sign onto the agreement n Not able to work with clients before or after n Financial Specialist – is the true neutral n Usually meets with entire group

Behaviour in Collaboration n Parameters identified for proper behaviour n Must abide by rules to maintain process n Not even a threat of going to court

Children in Collaboration n Remain - main concern same as traditional n Ability to solve items via parenting plans n Using the specialists gives them a voice n Better options for a respectful family unit

Issues n High conflict clients/power imbalance n Communication challenges n Clients being stuck on a position

Chartered Financial Divorce Specialist n Always represent both clients n Truly neutral presentation of scenarios n Reality check n Communicator of process, facts, details n Educator of facts and scenarios