Collaborative Law Institute Blog – Family Law Attorneys & Professionals
What is a legal separation?
A lot of confusion exists about the terms “separation” and “legal separation” under Minnesota law. While both refer to a change in marital status, they have distinct meanings, processes, and consequences. “Separation” means only that you are living in different...
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. One in four women (25%) has experienced domestic violence in her lifetime. Separated and divorced males and females are at a greater risk of domestic violence. However, it is difficult to track the percentage of...
5 School Tips for Divorced Parents
Now that everyone is back to school, here are some important things to remember for divorced families: 1. Be Mindful of the Schedule. Parents often look forward to the routine and structure of school, that is often lost in the summer months. Kids need that same sort...
Divorce and the Orange
What can an orange possibly help us with in our collaborative divorce or any divorce process for that matter? You may have heard about interest based negotiations vs. position based negotiations. When I am working as a financial neutral or mediator with divorcing...
The Third Agreement
In his book about how to avoid human conflict, Don Miguel Ruiz suggests these four agreements that a person makes with himself or herself: 1. I will be impeccable with my word. 2. I will not personalize the anything the other person says, does, feels, thinks or...
10 Questions for Your Divorce Attorney
It can be hard to find a divorce attorney and start the process. There are process options and it is sometimes difficult to pick an attorney and find a guide through the process. Here are ten questions to ask as you learn about divorce and try to determine who to...
Choose Your Process Wisely
A strategy used by some divorcing spouses and their attorneys is to threaten that they will take the other spouse to court. Threatening court is a negotiation strategy in an effort to get the other side to give up or significantly compromise their position(s). When...
The Adult Children of Divorce
It happens all the time – the parents who stayed married “for the kids” eventually do go ahead with the divorce. When parents’ divorce while the kids are still young, or at least minors, the children really have no choice but to adjust to their new schedules, in most...
People Before Numbers
It does not matter in the life of a child how much money you have in your bank account or really how fancy of a home you may live in. What matters most to that child is the quality time that two loving and caring parents can give that child. I will also say being the...
Having Someone “On Your Side” During Your Divorce
Divorce is difficult and painful; so it can feel very important to have friends, family and an attorney “On Your Side”. But what does that truly mean? Sometimes, during a divorce having someone “on your side” might mean the very opposite of what your instincts tell...
