When you become a parent, your child becomes the center of your world, and you find yourself naturally inclined to protect and provide for them. These behaviors should not change when going through a divorce and living separately from the other parent in Florida. You can still have a successful (under the circumstances) co-parenting relationship and make sure your kids stay happy and healthy.
How to accomplish this
The first step is to stay out of the court and instead seek peaceful and cooperative divorce alternatives. This could be through mediation, arbitration or collaborative law.
Mediation and arbitration are basically the same. The only difference is that in mediation, you and your ex-spouse meet with a neutral third party (the mediator) that guides you toward your own resolutions. In arbitration, the two of you agree to have an arbitrator to assess your circumstances and decide for you, just like a judge would. Arbitration may be a better option than going to court because arbitration is faster, private and often less expensive.
Collaborative law is an even better alternative because it involves you hiring a collaborative attorney to help negotiate all the details of your divorce agreement together – from child support and custody to the division of assets and alimony payments. This process is also confidential, non-adversarial and much less costly than going to court.
A child-centered divorce should also involve an honest dialogue between you and your former spouse and making room for compromises where needed. In most cases, equally shared parenting time is best for the children, but if that isn’t feasible, you can look into other arrangements, such as having a primary parent role.
Finally, a divorce best for your kids involves refraining from hiding assets or lying about your finances, dragging out the process for too long and bad-mouthing the other parent. Everyone involved should be acting out of love and support for their little ones, so the process can move along smoothly.
No matter how hard it may seem, putting the well-being of your kids first during a divorce can help make it easier in the long run. Consider all the available options before taking any legal action so that you can reach an agreement that works for everybody involved. Ultimately, with patience and understanding from both parents, you can ensure a healthy future for your children after divorce.
