Specialized Practice in Divorce and Child Custody ¨ Collaborative Divorce• Collaborative divorce helps resolve the ending of a marriage without resorting to adversarial techniques or tactics. It assists the divorcing couple to work as a team with trained professionals to settle disputes respectfully, without going to court. Collaborative Divorce helps contain conflict and stress and the spread of these factors to the children.   More >> • In collaborative divorce the non-adversarial participation by lawyers, working as a team with psychologists and other mental health professionals, allows the use of reason to solve problems, generate options and create a positive atmosphere for settlement – skills that usually are not employed in litigated cases. It transforms how families resolve conflict. Each party in the divorce has an attorney and mental health professional as advisors. Both parties and their advisors work together as a team. (A neutral financial advisor may also be on the team.) The team helps the spouses resolve conflict and reach a settlement which is a fair outcome not only for the parents but the family as a whole. Both lawyers pledge not to represent the parties if for some reason the case goes to court. This approach is far less expensive than a litigated divorce. (Collaborative divorce is also useful in the dissolution of common-law relationships and custody disputes when the parents are not married.) • This collaborative approach helps resolve the issues in a divorce without resorting to adversarial techniques or tactics. This is a preventative approach. It prevents problems. It helps contain conflict and stress and the spread of these to the children. • Collaborative divorce promotes respect, places the needs of children first and enables the spouses to be in control of the process. • Psychologists or other mental health professionals coach each spouse, assisting them in reaching a settlement. A child specialist may be used to inform the parents about special needs of the child that are being overlooked. Professionals practicing in this specialty area are required to have a three day training in collaborative divorce, a 40 hour training program in divorce mediation and experience as a licensed mental health professional, a lawyer or a financial advisor. Please contact me if you have any questions or require more information. You may also want to look at the following websites: www.collaborativepractice.com (an international organization) ¨ Pretrial Co-Parenting/Child Specialist Provide information on children’s needs and assistance resolving parenting issues in attempt to avoid litigation. ¨ Parenting Coordination • Parenting coordination is a child-focused alternative dispute resolution process for those parents who have difficulty implementing their parenting plans because of the ongoing conflict between them.    More >> ¨ Specialized Forensic Services1 • I specialize in stabilizing families during and after a divorce. This involves two main approaches with the first focused on the children and the second focused on the parents. Co-parenting coaching and post-divorce conflict resolution also can be provided.
1Note these services are focused on relationship issues and not covered by insurance. I conduct forensic evaluations in most areas involving families (family forensics). Child custody evaluations are a major part of my forensic practice. These evaluations may involve custody, visitation, disruption of visitation, need for supervision, removal of supervision, relocation, etc. I only undertake a child custody evaluation when the court appoints me, or both parents through their attorneys select me as a neutral psychologist. In some cases, attorneys ask me to review the adequacy of the evaluation conducted by another psychologist. Family forensics is the area formed by the overlap between Family Psychology and Forensic Psychology. I have been evaluating children for the court since 1972. General Clinical Practice with a Specialty in Families, Children and Adolesents I have a general clinical practice and a clinical specialty in families, children and adolescents.
For more information about my clinical practice click here.
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