Our Services - Family Law

No other event in an adult’s life presents more challenges and changes upon a person and a family than the dissolution of a marriage.  At ACCESS Law Group, we seek to partner with our matrimonial clients to empower them to envision the best possible future for their re-structured families and to find the solutions to achieve the vision.  We understand the potential and the limits of the law in problem-solving.  We assist clients to broaden the scope of their goals and strategies and prepare them not only for adjudication and also for settlement.  We believe that a good divorce is not an oxymoron but a goal which can be and should be aimed for in the best interests of all involved.

Besides the traditional divorce where neutral judiciary determines the outcome for the parties, we at ACCESS Law Group also desire to provide clients with better opportunity to participate in settling disputes by offering the following services:

Collaborative separation and divorce

Collaborative Practice is a form of alternative dispute resolution for divorcing couples who need strong legal representation, but would like to avoid long and protracted litigation.  The premise of Collaborative Practice is to resolve the divorce though a series of meetings between the clients and their respective lawyers, in which all issues are presented and discussed.  Using powerful problem-solving techniques, the lawyers assist the clients to craft a creative and unique solution for themselves. 
Unlike a traditional divorce, Collaborative Law uses a team approach offering you the option of retaining various divorce professionals.  You or your spouse can choose from any of the following:

• Divorce Lawyer - Essential for the collaborative process, advises you on family law in your state and works with your spouse's lawyer to draft a settlement.
• Financial Professional - Educates you on the short and long-term financial aspects of your divorce.
• Divorce Coach - Combines practical techniques and emotional support for dealing with your divorce and post-divorce parenting needs.

Mediation and Agreements – separation or staying married

A lawyer mediator is a neutral third party who acknowledges your emotional and practical concerns, while helping to negotiate an agreement between you and your spouse.  The mediator works with both parties to resolve key issues, including parenting arrangements, child and spousal support and property division. In a mediation session, either party may have a lawyer or financial planner present.  At the end of this process, the mediator creates a settlement agreement for your divorce.  Both parties will have the opportunity to seek independent legal advice regarding the agreement.

Where the parties have not made the irrevocable decision towards divorce, we offer marital mediation to help couples negotiate their differences to move forward in the marriage.  The mediator can assist the couple in thinking about financial and estate planning solutions that may relieve the stressors in their relationship.  Such agreements may have long-lasting course-correction effect.  Sometimes the mediation sessions will be simultaneous with continued marital counseling or individual therapy.