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The area of Domestic Relations covers a wide gamut of legal issues: divorce, custody of children, division of marital property, child and spousal support, as well as annulment and premarital agreements. Persons facing any of these trying issues can choose three basic approaches to resolution: litigation, mediation, or collaborative law. Of the three options, litigation is by far the most expensive - both financially and emotionally. For that reason I have been trained in both mediation and collaborative law. I belong to the Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation and am a founding member of the Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council. Mediating parties work out their own agreement with the assistance and input of a neutral mediator, and very often with the advice of separate attorneys. As an attorney and mediator, I strive to focus the parties on the legal issues that should be resolved, while remaining attuned to the emotional strain both parties undergo. The Collaborative Law approach to divorce is a relatively new idea. The basic philosophy is that the parties, each with a separate lawyer, will negotiate an agreement based on full disclosure of relative facts and each party's needs. However, if the negotiation should fail, neither attorney will take the matter to court. There is no using "I'll see you in court" as a bargaining tool. The Collaborative Lawyer will withdraw from the case rather than take the matter to court. With any of these approaches, it is crucial that the person work with an attorney who can be trusted to explain and and advance the needs, interests and legal rights of the client. Working out a suitable arrangement for the custody of the children is often a difficult and always a crucial part of every divorce process. I have worked on these issues both as lawyer and as court-appointed Guardian ad Litem, investigating custody matters and making recommendations in particularly difficult cases. Dividing the marital property can involve questions about investments and tax consequences that flow from the allocation of particular assets. My Estate Planning experience often serves well in divorce cases where tax and other issues arise. I often work with accountants, actuaries and financial planners to help clients work out the best way to divide the marital pie. The divorce agreement will become the blueprint for both parties' (and their children's) future lives. For that reason, I approach the task of reaching the agreement with a need to be thorough about the facts and to set a tone of civility that the parties can build on in their future dealings with each other and their children. |