As conflicts are composed of different kinds of issues, the collaborative process uses a team composed of different kinds of experts to help people resolve their conflicts.

For instance, most divorces have legal, financial and emotional issues. On the collaborative team the attorneys address the legal issues, the financial experts address the financial issues, and the mental health professionals address the communication challenges and the custody/visitation issues.

In a divorce or legal separation, instead of having an attorney wrestle with the numbers, a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA), such as my colleague Jude Sterling, gathers all the financial information and puts it into user-friendly reports so that people can have a solid reality check of their current finances. The CDFA also helps spouses see the financial impact of the various scenarios they are considering in dividing up the assets and debts. (Click here to visit Jude's website: Jude)

Makes sense, doesn't it?

If you'd like to find out more about the collaborative process, you can check out our very own Sonoma County inter-disciplinary group called The Collaborative Council of the Redwood Empire and its counterpart, The International Academy of Collaborative Professionals.

Comparison with mediation: both are faster, less stressful, and cost less money than traditional going-to-court litigation. However, in mediation the parties are not represented unless they have outside legal counsel which I always recommend, but parties do not always have. In collaboration, all parties have legal representation so if you feel you need active, on-going representation, collaboration is the better choice for you.