What Does a Collaborative Divorce Coach Do?

The role of the divorce coach is to assist each person in the divorcing couple to navigate the emotional aspects of their divorce. 

Divorce is almost always a painful, confusing and emotionally challenging time for everyone in the family. The Collaborative process has taken seriously the impact that these emotions have on the process of getting divorced. The Collaborative law community has found it essential to have a licensed professional to improve communication and to resolve conflict for the separating couple as they make decisions that will impact the rest of their lives.  

How can the coach help us? 

• By providing emotional support - divorce is painful and difficult

• Helping express and prioritize concerns and needs

• Learn stress reduction strategies

• Help parents emotionally support their children through the divorce process

• Strengthen co-parenting communication and help develop a parenting plan

• Teach problem-solving strategies

Will we meet with the coach separately, with our attorneys, or all together? 

Yes! All of these situations are possibilities with the divorce coach. Sometimes it's helpful for the coach to have a meeting with both spouses to assist in negotiating and formulating agreements such as the parenting plan, or other aspects of the divorce. In other situations, it may be helpful for one spouse to meet individually with the divorce coach for assistance in managing a particularly difficult emotional aspect of the divorce. 

In Collaborative divorce, who pays for the divorce coach? 

This cost is split by both spouses. 

Is this different than having a therapist? 

While there are some similar functions between a Collaborative divorce coach and a personal therapist (both provide emotional support), it's important to know that your Collaborative divorce coach is not your individual counselor. The primary goal of the Collaborative coach is to assist couples through a facilitated communication process to solve their own problems and create a vision of their co-parenting relationship and post-divorce family.