In general, the courts have been slow to accept collaborative divorce. In Oregon, there are no formal court pleadings associated with the collaborative process.
New York has taken the lead with collaborative divorce and opened teh Collaborative Family Law Center, the first court-based collaborative law center in the country. The center will provide divorcing spouses with the chance to work with collaboratively trained attorneys.
Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman said, “The Collaborative Family Law Center was established to provide parties with a more child-centered, needs-based alternative to matrimonial litigation. By promoting collaborative law and mediation from the outset, before the parties proceed down an adversarial path, the Center aims to mitigate emotional friction – friction often exacerbated by New York State’s lack of no-fault divorce. The collaborative process minimizes the all-too-familiar cost of divorce – wasted time, money and the often hefty emotional price paid by children caught in the middle. It is a more respectful approach that lets couples decide for themselves what is best for their families and their futures.”
I agree that matrimonial litigation needs to be more child centered.