Camille Milner, a CLI-TX board member and a frequent contributor to our blog, called our attention to this recent post by CLI-TX member and SpringerLyle partner Frank Lyle on the Denton County Collaborative Professionals blog. It looks at Collaborative Divorce and litigation side-by-side as divorce options, making some excellent points about the advantages that collaborative divorce provides.
Lyle observes, in one key passage of the article, “There are no depositions, written discovery, hearings or filed motions” in collaborative law. He then points out, astutely, that, “The blame game is not a part of the process and the exchange of relevant information is required, but the timeline for production is controlled by the parties.”
Milner further expands on the article by saying:
He beautifully explains that the cost of a litigated case as money spent which should be considered just a “cost of doing business” (in other words, without necessarily any or much return), but that the money spent on a collaborative divorce is an investment in that family’s future. I would add that, in litigation, there is no guarantee of any return for your investment in litigation: you may win, you may lose, but the only guarantee you have is that you will be divorced and that your relationship with your ex will be worse and your children will be worse off than if you were able to handle your divorce through the collaborative process. In contrast, the money spent on a collaborative divorce is, as he said, an investment in your future, for which the return is a peaceful, secure future for you and your family.
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