Avoiding the courtroom.
Anytime families are thrust into the court system, it is stressful
for all involved. The inconvenient demands of the court calendar,
the intimidating atmosphere of the court, and the impersonal treatment
of very personal cases can make the courtroom an undesirable forum
for conflict resolution. CL can eliminate these negatives and give
clients the opportunity to make their own decisions, in their own
time, with dignity and personalized treatment.
Setting a more positive stage for the future co-parenting
relationship.
Research on children of divorce reveals that the number one factor
that determines how kids get through the divorce process is the
amount of conflict they must experience during and after the divorce.
If we can help parents reduce or eliminate the conflict, we know
that kids will have a better chance of coming through divorce in
a more healthy way. When co-parents begin their post-divorce relationship
with a “knock-down-drag-out” fight in the courtroom,
they are likely to continue that style of communication in the future.
Attorneys and judges can easily walk away from the courtroom fight
and go on with their lives – but children and families whose
lives have been damaged must live with the fallout. CL can help
co-parents establish a more peaceful way of communicating that will
hopefully extend into the future.
Saving
time and money.
At first glance, CL may seem to be more involved, and therefore more
expensive, than the traditional court process because of the involvement
of an interdisciplinary team. In reality, however, CL tends to reduce
time and costs because the team works together, rather than as adversaries.
Traditionally, attorneys spend a lot of time filing motions, sending
written communication to the other side, gathering information from
professionals, and building a case in order to win in court. When
both sides are engaged in similar activities that work toward a win,
rather than one common goal, efforts are doubled with no promise of
mutual resolution. CL, however, requires only one team that works
cooperatively. CL attorneys actually talk to each other in respectful
tones and work toward balancing client advocacy and realistic resolution
of the issues. Current estimates are that CL can cost up to one-third
less than traditional litigation.
Considering
more then one way to resolve an issue.
Too often, because of time constraints and lack of creativity in the
traditional litigation system, professionals encourage divorcing couples
to “do what everyone else does.” Although standard agreements
are convenient and work for many people, your life may not be “standard.”
CL encourages the process of brainstorming to help parties come up
with agreements that are better suited for their particular family’s
needs and lifestyle. A higher level of communication between the parties
and involvement of open-minded professionals creates an atmosphere
that allows parties to think outside of the box.
Retaining
the power to make decisions.
No one likes to be told what to do, how to do it, and when to do it.
Yet, our traditional litigation system often dictates the details
of finances and parenting after divorce. Statistics show that people
are more likely to abide by agreements that they have an active part
in creating. Because CL parties and professionals know that they will
not be asking the court to make their decisions for them, everyone
is inclined to embrace disagreements by rolling up their sleeves and
working a little bit harder to find points of agreement, rather than
relinquishing power to the courts.
Privacy,
fairness and minimizing stress.
Anyone in the public can attend your court hearing, but you decide
who will attend your CL meeting! If you have sensitive issues that
you would rather not have aired in the public domain, CL is the way
to go. Since “fair” is a subjective word, it is common
that parties will have different ideas about fairness. Through mediation
and communication techniques, CL professionals help parties to recognize
the importance of considering each other’s concepts of fairness
and work toward common ground that can honor both.