COLLABORATIVE DIVORCE
WESTCHESTER DIVORCE LAWYERS
Serving Westchester, Putnam, the Hudson Valley & New York City
Divorce does not have to be an economic and emotional battle. Divorce issues can be resolved with dignity, civility and privacy, on terms that are fair and take into consideration the needs of the parties and their children.
Our Divorce & Family Law practice focuses on Collaborative Divorce, and Mediation to assist clients in ending their marriage, obtaining a fair settlement and moving on with their lives, with the goals of respectful communication, co-parenting and a secure future for the parties and their family.
Mark Bass is a Westchester Divorce Lawyer who sees the need for an alternative to litigating sensitive family issues in court, where both the emotional and economic costs can be overwhelming.
Please review the Collaborative Divorce and Mediation sections of our web site to learn more about your options and/or contact us to schedule an appointment.
The following is a description of Collaborative Divorce.
Collaborative Divorce is:
1. An out of Court process.
2. Each spouse has their own attorney whose objective is to help the parties settle their disputes. While the Lawyers advocate for their client, there is no threatening, deception or coercion.
3. The Attorneys agree not to litigate. If the Clients cannot resolve the matter using the collaborative process and want to litigate, the Attorneys must withdraw and the clients will have to hire new attorneys to litigate. This requires the Attorneys and clients to have common goals in working toward resolving the issues and a dissolution of the marriage.
4. Discovery proceedings are open. No one can hide relevant information. If information is hidden or concealed and the deception is discovered the process will break down. In addition, concealed information can lead to an agreement that will be subject to attack and may not be binding. For those fearing that assets may be hidden an asset search can be done. (The dilemma of a party hiding assets can exist whether you are using the collaborative process, mediation or litigation).
5. The parties work with a team of professionals in addition to the Attorneys, which includes a coach, a neutral financial professional, and may include a child specialist. The types of professionals on the team may vary depending on the individual needs of the clients. The team approach takes into consideration the emotional and financial issues facing the individual spouses as well as issues which center on the children. This is done by making available specially trained professionals to address each spouse’s individual concerns and the concerns of the children. When these issues are not addressed in this manner the divorce process may be subject to greater conflict, delay, and increased legal expenses. Please see the links below for additional information.
6. The Collaborative Process is designed to end the marriage:
- With dignity.
- Within a reasonable time. Clients participate in setting the pace within which the case moves. You are not subject to the Court’s calendar.
- With a workable framework for co-parenting.
- With a workable framework for future life cycle events such as graduations, weddings, family gatherings, birthdays and religious events.
- With understanding and respect.
7. The Collaborative Process allows the divorcing couple to make the decisions about their family, finances and future at their own pace, rather than leaving those decisions to an overburdened court system and the adversarial process.
8. The Collaborative Process works with the divorcing couple to end the marriage with civility on terms that are equitable and fair.
