Royal Oak Collaborative Divorce Lawyer

A Royal Oak Divorce Can Be Resolved Through Collaboration Instead of a Trial

Divorce does not always have to be decided by a judge.

When both spouses are willing to negotiate openly, collaborative divorce gives them a structured way to resolve parenting, support, property, and financial issues outside the courtroom.

The process starts with two separate attorneys. Each spouse has a lawyer who provides individual legal advice, while neutral professionals can help with financial questions, parenting concerns, and other issues that benefit from specialized guidance. The goal is to reach a complete settlement that both spouses can accept.

Our attorneys are Collaborative attorneys and trained mediators who have practiced family law their entire careers. They represent clients from the Bloomfield Hills and Ann Arbor offices of Nichols, Sacks, Slank, Sendelbach, Buiteweg & Solomon, P.C., serving Royal Oak and communities throughout Oakland County.

Before you commit to this process, reach out to our team. We can explain how collaborative divorce would work in your circumstances and whether it is a practical option for your family.

Start With the Right Question

The first issue is not how quickly you can reach a settlement. It is whether you and your spouse can participate in a process built around negotiation.

Collaborative divorce may make sense when both spouses are prepared to:

• Exchange the information needed to make informed decisions
• Discuss disputed issues outside the courtroom
• Work with their own attorneys while sharing neutral professionals
• Consider solutions that address both spouses’ priorities
• Commit to resolving the case without asking a judge to decide disputed issues

The process can be less suitable when one spouse uses control or intimidation, refuses to disclose financial information, or wants the court to decide the dispute. Safety concerns also require careful consideration.

A first consultation can help identify those issues before you enter into a collaborative agreement.

What the Collaborative Process Looks Like?

Collaborative divorce is not an informal conversation between spouses. It follows a defined legal process, with attorneys and other professionals helping the family work through its unresolved issues.

1. Each spouse chooses a collaborative attorney

You and your spouse do not share an attorney. Each person needs independent legal advice and representation throughout the process.

After choosing your attorneys, you sign a participation agreement committing to resolve the divorce collaboratively rather than taking the dispute to trial.

2. The team is assembled around your needs

Your attorneys can help determine whether neutral professionals should join the process. Depending on the issues involved, the team may include a financial professional, divorce coach, or child specialist.

These professionals do not replace your attorneys. They address areas where specialized guidance can help the two of you reach informed decisions.

3. You prepare before joint discussions

You may meet privately with your attorney before joint sessions.

You can also request a break during a joint session when you need time to speak privately with your attorney.

4. The team works through the unresolved issues

Joint meetings focus on the decisions required to complete the divorce. Those may include parenting time, decision-making for children, child support, spousal support, the marital home, retirement accounts, and other property.

Rather than presenting the entire dispute to a judge, you and your spouse work through the issues with assistance from your collaborative team.

5. The agreement is prepared for court approval

Once all necessary terms have been resolved, the attorneys prepare the settlement documents. Both spouses sign the agreement, and the case proceeds through the court for final approval.

The court remains part of the legal process. Collaborative divorce changes how the spouses reach their agreement, not the court’s role in entering the final judgment.

What Can Be Resolved Through Collaborative Divorce?

The same major divorce issues that might otherwise be presented to a judge can be addressed during collaborative negotiations.

Parenting arrangements

You and your spouse can establish a schedule for regular parenting time, holidays, school breaks, and other recurring arrangements. You can also address how important decisions about education and health care will be made.

Child support

The process can address the amount of child support and how the parents will handle additional expenses involving the children.

Spousal support

If spousal support is an issue, the spouses can negotiate whether support will be paid, along with the amount and duration.

Property and finances

The settlement can address the marital home, bank accounts, retirement assets, business interests, and other property that must be divided as part of the divorce.

The court still reviews the completed agreement before the divorce becomes final.

When Collaborative Divorce May Not Be the Appropriate Process?

Collaboration requires participation from both spouses. A process built on negotiation becomes difficult when one person is unwilling to negotiate or cannot participate safely.

Issues that may call for another approach include domestic abuse or coercive control, significant concerns about undisclosed assets, or a spouse who wants a judge to resolve the dispute.

That does not leave you without options. Mediation, traditional settlement negotiations, or litigation may provide a more appropriate structure. We can discuss those alternatives before you sign a collaborative participation agreement.

For general information about divorce in Royal Oak and Oakland County, visit our Royal Oak divorce page.

How to Discuss Collaborative Divorce With Your Spouse?

You do not need to settle every issue before raising the possibility of collaborative divorce.

A useful starting point is to explain that the process allows both spouses to have separate attorneys while working toward an agreement outside of trial. You can also explain that neutral professionals may be available to help with financial or parenting questions.

Your spouse does not have to make an immediate commitment. They can speak with a collaborative attorney of their own choosing, ask questions, and decide whether the process is appropriate.

If raising the subject with your spouse creates a safety concern, speak with an attorney before approaching the subject directly. Another form of divorce resolution may be more appropriate.

What Happens If the Collaborative Process Ends Without an Agreement?

Collaborative divorce has an important feature that distinguishes it from ordinary settlement negotiations.

Under Michigan’s Uniform Collaborative Law Act, MCL 691.1331 et seq., the attorneys representing the spouses are  barred from representing either spouse in court proceedings related to the divorce if the collaborative process ends. The other lawyers at their firms are also barred.

Each spouse then obtains a new attorney for litigation.

There are limited exceptions, including proceedings to obtain court approval of an agreement and certain emergency circumstances while a replacement attorney is being obtained.

This rule is one reason the decision to enter collaborative divorce deserves careful consideration before signing the participation agreement. Your attorney should explain what the agreement requires, what happens if negotiations fail, and what other options remain available.

Where a Royal Oak Divorce Is Filed: Oakland County Circuit Court in Pontiac?

Royal Oak is in Oakland County, and a divorce filed there is handled by the Oakland County Circuit Court, Family Division, located at 1200 N. Telegraph Road in Pontiac.

Even when spouses resolve their issues collaboratively, the divorce still moves through the court system. The judge reviews the settlement and enters the final judgment.

Michigan’s statutory waiting period also applies. Under MCL 552.9f, a divorce involving dependent children under 18 generally requires six months to pass after the filing before testimony may be taken.  In certain situations, there is the ability to request that the court waive the six-month waiting period and accelerate entry. 

A divorce without minor children has a 60-day waiting period. On petition, the six-month period may be shortened to no less than 60 days in cases involving unusual hardship or compelling necessity, but it cannot be assumed that a negotiated settlement eliminates the statutory waiting period.

Royal Oak Collaborative Divorce Questions?

Can collaborative divorce address child custody and parenting time?

Yes. Parenting time, decision-making responsibilities, holiday schedules, and other parenting terms can be negotiated as part of the settlement.

Is collaborative divorce private?

The collaborative process takes place outside the public courtroom, although the divorce itself remains a court proceeding. Michigan law also provides protections concerning information exchanged during the collaborative process, subject to statutory exceptions and any applicable waiver.

How long does collaborative divorce take?

The number of issues involved, the pace of information exchange, the number of joint sessions, and the statutory waiting period can all affect how long the case takes.

Is collaborative divorce less expensive than going to trial?

It can be, but there is no guaranteed cost difference. Expenses depend on the attorneys, neutral professionals, number of meetings, financial issues, parenting disputes, and other circumstances involved in the case.

What if my spouse refuses to participate?

Your spouse cannot be forced to use the collaborative process. If your spouse does not agree to participate, another method of resolving the divorce will need to be considered.

Can collaborative divorce work when children are involved?

Yes. Parenting issues can be addressed during the collaborative process, and a child specialist may be included when the family would benefit from that professional’s involvement.

Do I have to appear in court in Pontiac?

Collaborative negotiations take place primarily through meetings with the attorneys and other members of the team. If your case is filed in Oakland County, the Circuit Court in Pontiac must approve the settlement and enter the final judgment. Many counties require one short hearing before the judge signs, and your attorney can tell you what to expect in your case.

What should I bring to my first consultation?

Financial records can help your attorney understand the issues in your case. Useful documents may include recent pay stubs, your most recent tax return, bank and retirement account statements, and information about your children’s schedules and activities.

What experience does the firm have with collaborative divorce?

Nichols, Sacks, Slank, Sendelbach, Buiteweg & Solomon, P.C. has worked in mediation, Collaborative practice, and arbitration involving family law matters.

Find Out Whether Collaborative Divorce Fits Your Family

Choosing collaborative divorce is a decision to make before you sign the participation agreement.

A consultation gives you an opportunity to discuss your priorities, understand how the process works, and identify circumstances that could make another form of divorce resolution more appropriate.

When you contact Nichols, Sacks, Slank, Sendelbach, Buiteweg & Solomon, P.C., include the county where your case will be filed, whether you have children, and the issues you expect to address. We can explain the next steps and what you can expect from an initial consultation.