New type of divorce sweeping the country

Story by Mary Quinn O’Connor/CBS12

 Karen Coleman has heard horror stories about the divorce process.

So when she filed, she knew exactly what she didn't want.

"I was dreading the process. I knew it had potential to be very adversarial,” says Coleman.

So, she reached out to attorney Kim Nutter, who heads a group called The South Palm Beach County Collaborative Law Group.

A collaborative divorce is exactly what she got.

“They are trying to guide you to a resolution as opposed to gearing you up for a fight.”

Typically there are three traditional ways to get a divorce: do it yourself, through a mediator or through litigation.

Kim Nutter says a collaborative divorce is a happy medium between mediation and litigation and it's sweeping the country.

“In a traditional divorce, people takes positions and they dig in their heels,” says Nutter.  “You choose a collaborative divorce if you want to maintain some type of relationship," adds Nutter.

There are key differences between a litigated divorce and a collaborative divorce.

A litigated divorce can cost hundreds of thousands, even millions.

But, a collaborative divorce typically stays in the tens of thousands of dollars.

A litigated divorce can take years; a collaborative, just a few months.

The biggest difference, however, is everything is done outside of the courtroom.

“There is a better way to do it, a way that still allows disclosure and will do less harm to a family,” says Nutter.

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