I was reading an excellent book called Collaborative Divorce, written by Pauline Tesler and Peggy Thompson, which gave me pause to consider what people should really think about when they come in for Collaborative Divorce.  I’ve known Pauline and…

People going through divorce are getting smarter. They’re looking for ways to work together for the good of the family - in their parenting arrangements, financial settlements and in the education of their children. Sending a child to college is one of the most significant financial burdens divorced parents can face today, but there are choices…

People going through divorce are getting smarter. They’re looking for ways to work together for the good of the family - in their parenting arrangements, financial settlements and in the education of their children. Sending a child to college is one of the most significant financial…

The month of September has been busy for conferences. I’ve spent my time attending several of these events in an effort to stay on top of the newest mediation techniques, as well as to stay up to date on financial and tax changes in the industry. While I’ve been away from my blog, I’ve been learning new information so I can better serve my clients. Here’s a quick recap of where I’ve been throughout September. 

I’ve attended the annual Atlanta Collaborative Divorce…

Originally published in The TuckerPatch

• By Heather Kinney
• Email the author
• September 13, 2012

Divorce affects fifty-percent of all married couples in the United States. The concept often triggers thoughts of cold litigation, financial disturbances, and custody feuds. Thankfully, the method…

Divorce Innovations offers a unique approach, focusing on the couple, rather than the individual.

Divorce Innovations, a company providing alternative solutions to traditional divorce, will hold a seminar about the legal aspects of divorce on Sat., July 28. The seminar will be held from 10 a.m. – noon at Divorce Innovations, 1201 Peachtree St.,…

When working towards a divorce, my clients are primarily concerned about how it will affect them financially. What will it cost in taxes? Can they continue their current lifestyle? What will their financial future look like?

Clients may have certain concepts of divorce and not realize how it’s going to impact them financially or how to make the best financial decisions. A good example is, I…

Fifteen or twenty years ago, the norm was, “I want to get divorced, and there’s only one way. We go to court. We both find attorneys, whether we talk about it or battle it, and we go to court.” I think today we have a new norm, and the new norm today is that there are different alternative dispute resolutions out there. We have mediation, we have collaborative, we have arbitration, and…

Can you help me to help others? Those of us who are

divorce professionals can surely relate to cases of divorce gone

wrong and we're members here at Peaceful Divorce because we 

know divorce doesn't necessarily have to be that way.

I'm on a mission to enlighten and empower people about better,

less bitter, ways to divorce that saves people time, money and

their sanity in the process, but to do that takes resources and that's

why I’m…

How Do We Figure Child Support?

Should you test drive your divorce? What does that really mean? I think test driving your divorce takes a special couple. Not everybody can handle it, but imagine a couple that says, “Ok, we’re going to get divorced but we wanna do what’s right for the children and we want to do what’s right for us financially. So what we’re going to do is separate. We’re going to try a parenting plan for several months and see how that parenting plan is…

We all know that the recession is deep and painful for millions of people. It happens that divorce is a discretionary expense like home improvements, that many people will simply defer or delay because of the current circumstances. There is not only the expense of the divorce itself, but then there is the resulting two households to support.



A lot of people who would be in the market for a divorce are looking at their pocketbooks and deciding that whatever their marital problems…

In my 30 years as a divorce attorney, and especially the last 16 years that I have been a divorce mediator, and now as a counselor, a phrase I have heard very often when I get up on my soapbox about Peaceful Divorce is, “but you don’t know my ex!” or “it’s not possible to have a peaceful divorce in my situation”. Not so. You CAN learn how to get a divorce the peaceful way, whether your spouse or ex is on board right now or not.

Now that may not be what you want to hear because what it…

A financial neutral plays a very different role than that of an expert witness. A financial neutral is a person who, when working in divorce, becomes an educator. A financial neutral brings a unique blend of financial knowledge and mediation skills to the table and works with the couple to streamline the …

We’ve got a seminar coming up June 23 and July 28.  Divorce Innovations will be presenting a seminar about the nuts and bolts of divorce, with attorneys talking about the law in Georgia.  Marsha Schechtman and Dr. Paul Fair will be talking about parenting plans, communication, and listening skills for people who are…

We know that the divorce rate among all couples is about 50%, but there is no question that divorce rates are even higher among parents of children with special needs.

Below is an article written by Dr. Howard Drutman and Marsha Schechtman, LCSW. In this article they talk about the considerations that must be understood about the special needs child. In addition to their information we also have…

When you decide to divorce, it’s important to note that you aren’t automatically setting yourself up for a long, drawn out process. Divorcing families can employ alternative dispute resolution techniques to limit the damage that divorce may cause. By choosing alternative dispute resolutions, couples can minimize the impact that divorce has on their children and their…

Retirement plans are one of the largest assets to be divided amongst a splitting couple.  There are 2 types of retirement plans: Qualified plans and Non-Qualified plans.  Your 401K, Profit Sharing, 403b, and pension plans are Qualified plans.  Non-Qualified plans are IRA, SEP IRA, and Roth IRA.



What do you need to divide up a Qualified…

When couples are going through a divorce, what are some of the problems that they face while working through the compromise? Well – probably the two main reasons why couples get divorced are financial and communication issues.

Financially – they look at the different pieces of their collective and individual financial puzzle. They look at the division of…