Collaborative Law Institute Blog – Family Law Attorneys & Professionals
Alcohol and Divorce: A Truly Toxic Cocktail
Not all divorces are related to alcohol abuse, but the percentage is fairly high. I don’t have any scientific study, but my own experience of observing thousands of divorces over three decades, I have found that nearly half of all divorces involve, at minimum,...
Adult Children of Divorce: 3 Considerations
Divorce is a family event that impacts children of all ages.There has been an uptick of divorces for middle-aged and older couples whose children may have already launched their adult lives.Just because children are not living under the same roof with a parent or...
How To Handle A Reluctant Spouse In A Divorce
When you are ready to start a divorce, nothing creates more frustration than the reluctant spouse. How are you supposed to move forward with your life when your husband or wife doesn’t want a divorce? Here is my advice for dealing with the spouse who is dragging...
Your Last Name: To Change or Not to Change?
If you changed your last name when you married, you may want to change your name in the divorce. If you choose to change your name after your divorce, it is often easiest to include the name change in the paperwork filed with the court. You would ask the court to...
Getting Unmarried: Divorce, Money, Financial Neutrals
In my last post “Getting Unmarried: Gray Divorces” I wrote about the increasing number of divorces for those over the age of fifty. Also of note was how Gray Divorces have many of the same foundational issues as any divorce although there are some distinct...
Divorce after Cancer?
Sometimes what comes after the “C-word” can unfortunately be the “D-word” – divorce. The incidence of divorce/separation is unfortunately quite high after one partner has been diagnosed or is in some stage of battling cancer. If you are a woman, the odds are even less...
Budget Your Way to a New Life – Part One: Cash Flow
Cash flow refers to how your money moves in your household, from the time it is received to when it is spent. When your cash flow is “positive,” it means you have more money coming in than going out; you are spending less than you take in each month. You want positive...
Minnesota; A Better Place to get a Divorce: Part 2
In my last blog I wrote about how people travel all around the world to learn about how we Collaborative divorce in Minnesota. In this blog, I want to say a little bit about why that is true. Describing all of the elements of Collaborative Divorce would require more...
Behind the Scenes of a Divorce
Recently I participated in a case debrief with other members of a Collaborative team. The debrief, or case consultation, is a regular and ordinary part of Collaborative Team Practice. Any team member can request a debrief to get an update or deal with an emerging...
The Bookcase
It was actually my wife’s idea. Lose the clunky stand-alone bookshelf on the second floor landing and build in a bookcase that wraps around the stairwell. Four years ago, her father called a buddy with a sawmill up north. The buddy sold us an oak tree. Then he...
