Divorce Without Going To Court

Peacemakers for Lower Income Clients

2012-02-15T23:21:00.000-08:00

Pasadena Affordable Divorce offers collaborative law, co-mediation and limited scope/unbundled services to clients with lower income. These peacemaking services have historically been available to the upper middle class and wealthy clients. Not any more.

Pasadena Affordable Divorce consists primarily of minority professionals, including lawyers, divorce coaches and a financial specialist, all of whom are mediators. The group includes professionals who speak Spanish and Armenian and we come from all kinds of backgrounds. This diverse group of well-trained professionals is committed to serving clients regardless of their socio-economic class, ethnicity and sexual orientation, and we serve at reduced rates.

Pasadena Affordable Divorce was founded by Leslie Howell, Esq. and George Bryant, LCSW, and we are honored to have Forrest "Woody" Mosten as our senior advisor.

For more information on Pasadena Affordable Divorce, visit www.pasadenaaffordabledivorce.com or call (626) 389-2235 to schedule an initial consultation.

Choosing Your Mediator

2012-02-02T18:08:00.000-08:00

There are a few decisions you will need to make in order to settle your case. Besides what method to use (such as co-mediation, mediation and collaborative law), you will need to make sure that you and your mediator and/or lawyer are a good fit. Experience, training and a passion for settlement are all qualities to look for. If you have children, you may want to know whether your mediator has raised any children. In addition, you may have an idea of what you are looking for in a peacemaker, and then change your mind because you have found someone who is a good fit in other ways. For instance, you feel at ease and trust her. This could very well be the most important factor above all others.

Another factor to keep in mind is whether your peacemaker still litigates. Her answer may change your mind. Maybe you want a professional who only mediates and practices collaborative law. This may show that the professional has dedicated her life to the peacemaking process. On the other hand, you may want someone who still litigates because they are in the trenches and may know what the current trends are in the courtrooms. They may also have a working experience with your judge and know her or his quirks. That way, your mediator or collaborative professional may be able to lend a little insight as to what might happen if you were to appear in that courtroom.

Maybe you have a case with no assets and debts. Or you have substantial assets and debts. Different professionals have different experiences or choose to accept certain financial levels. I am an example of a peacemaker who has been trained in high profile cases, but I choose to resolve lower and mid-income disputes. If you and your ex earn $75,000 or less in combined, gross, annual income, you may qualify for reduced rates through Pasadena Affordable Divorce: www.pasadenaaffordabledivorce.com .

Remember, this is your mediation or collaborative process. You need to make sure that you choose the right professionals for your family to guide you through each step of the process.

Choose a Peacemaker, Not a Bulldog Attorney

2011-02-10T03:49:00.000-08:00

If it is time for you to deal with your divorce or custody matter, there are different kinds of professionals you can hire to help you through the process. If you want to go to court and make your spouse and children suffer with intense stress, then you can hire a bulldog attorney to make several court appearances and write lots of letters threatening the other side. This will surely make your spouse stop communicating with you and will cost both of you tens of thousands of dollars in attorney's fees.

The other option is to hire a peacemaker to settle your case. You can hire a peacemaking litigation attorney whose focus is on settling the case for you, but has courtroom experience in case you cannot settle. Not all family law attorneys are peacemakers in nature. Some attorneys are used to bullying and rarely settle their cases. By the way, this does not mean that you will get the best outcome for yourself. I've even attended mediation where the attorney on the other side announced that she would not allow her client to participate in the mediation and that attending mediation was a bad idea in the first place. The only reason she and her client showed up that day was because the court ordered us all to attend. It was appalling to me that she did not even attempt to reach a peaceful resolution.

Bulldog attorneys who claim to mediate frustrate the settlement process and cost both parties an enormous amount of unnecessary attorney's fees. If you prefer to avoid the anger and hatred involved in bulldog litigation, make sure that you select an attorney who has a reputation for being a peacemaker. How do you know? Many peacemakers belong to local collaborative law groups. For instance, I belong to the Pasadena Collaborative Divorce group, Coalition of Collaborative Professionals and Collaborative Divorce Professionals of the Inland Empire, all of which have websites that you can browse through when looking for a peacemaker. I am confident that the attorneys in my groups will refrain from "churning" your case. In other words, we do not create lots of animosity for the sole purpose of driving up your attorney's fees to line our own pockets with your money the way a bulldog attorney will.

For more information, call the Law Offices of Howell and Howell at 626-568-1900 to schedule an appointment to discuss the differences between litigation costs and settlement costs. For more information about us visit http://www.pasadenamediationlawyer.com/ .

What is Co-Mediation?

2011-02-03T17:53:00.000-08:00

There are different forms of mediation in family law. The traditional method is for one neutral mediator to meet with both spouses (either with or without their lawyers). The mediator does not make any decisions but helps the spouses find a way to compromise so that they can reach an agreement. This is a great method when the parties have already made most of their decisions together and there is a very low level of conflict.

A newer method is co-mediation. Co-mediators can be lawyers, divorce coaches, financial specialists or trained mediators other than the above. The combination of co-mediators selected will be based on your concerns. For instance, if the subject of child support and child visitation creates tension, then you might consider having a divorce coach and a lawyer mediate together in order to reduce tension on those issues. Or, if you have a substantial amount of property, need to determine how much property you have, or need to create monthly budgets then one of your mediators should be a financial specialist and the other may be an attorney. There could be more than two co-mediators depending on the divorce.

Co-mediating is far less stressful than going to court or having one mediator. In addition, the children and other family members could be positively affected by using this method. Furthermore, co-mediation is far less expensive than going to court. Hiring more than one mediator may seem expensive but if you look at the big picture, then it will be obvious that co-mediation is tens of thousands of dollars less than litigating in court.

Please make sure that your mediators have intensive training and are peacemakers rather than bulldog litigators who occasionally mediate.

For more information, contact the Law Offices of Howell & Howell at 626-568-1900, or visit http://www.pasadenamediationlawyer.com .

What Are My Options to Divorce Without Court?

2011-02-03T17:30:00.000-08:00

There are numerous ways for you and your spouse to obtain a divorce without going to court. The method you select will be based on your interests and concerns. For instance, if you are concerned that your children have a good relationship with both parents after the divorce, you would be more interested in collaborative law or some form of co-mediation.

If your children are your chief concern, collaborative law is an excellent choice. Collaborative law is a process that brings parents, children and the rest of the family to a state that is a less tense than litigation or going through divorce without a team approach. When children of divorce see their parents communicating without tension, it makes their lives easier in the present and future. Collaborative divorce is also a great choice for couples who do not have any children but are concerned with property division and creating their monthly budgets that will last for years to come. Moreover, collaborative law is much less expensive than going to court.

For more information on collaborative law or other no-court options, call the Law Offices of Howell & Howell at 626-568-1900 or visit http://www.howellfamilylaw.com/ .

How Do I Protect My Children?

2011-01-26T17:07:00.000-08:00

In Los Angeles County, social workers from the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) can remove the children from both parents on the grounds that the conflict in their divorce is detrimental to the children. This means that it is initially in the social workers' discretion to determine what level of conflict is detrimental to the children. Months after the children have been detained by DCFS and placed into foster care, there is a trial where a judicial officer will determine whether the conflict reached a level that it considers detrimental to the children. Many parents feel that DCFS rubber stamps the social workers' recommendations and that their court-appointed attorneys are ineffective.

The best way for divorcing parents to prevent this risk is to stay out of court and choose either mediation, or collaborative law. Through these processes, the parents can make personal choices together that affect the kids rather than having strangers determine where the kids will live and with whom. In addition, we work with various professionals who can help defuse the conflict and get your through your divorce with respect.

For more information, visit http://www.pasadenamediationlawyer.com/ .