Our greatest joy and our greatest pain comes in our relationships with others.
DIVORCE:
There is a better way
It’s common knowledge that divorce is terrible, but what if it didn’t have to be? What if there was an option for your friends and family members to navigate divorce in a way that didn’t destroy their family financially and emotionally? What if there were private and respectful alternatives, where couples could divorce with dignity and preserve the integrity of their relationship in a process that is generally much faster, less expensive and done completely outside of court?
The statistics show:
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For decades, the divorce rate in the United States has hovered around 50%, and half of all children will witness their parents’ divorce.
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Research shows that the death of a parent has a less harmful effect on kids than their parents’ divorce, but that those harmful effects can be minimized based on how a couple conducts themselves during a divorce.
Divorce is devastating...
both financially and emotionally. At Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions we understand the emotional roller coaster you’ll go through leading up to and during divorce. After 20 years of experience in the arena of family law litigation, we have discovered that there is a better way to approach the difficult, personal and emotional issues that naturally arise in family law cases.
At FWLLS, we bring a wealth of experience in divorce litigation and years of attempting to navigate an adversarial legal system. Based on our extensive courtroom experience, it became obvious that the adversarial approach to litigation works effectively for business deals gone wrong, civil disputes, injuries and crime, but it isn’t effective for families, who are merely trying to resolve what is already a painful period of separation. That is why we have applied our experience, understanding and training in alternative approaches to divorce to help you navigate the complexities of the legal system and your family law matter with a compassionate, client-focused approach, that will benefit your family, your finances and your future.
Attorney Mike Biederstadt is certified as a mediator, trained as a collaborative divorce attorney and a fellow of Collaborative Divorce Illinois. At FWLLS, we emphasize a strong focus on out-of-court and uncontested divorce, which is a much healthier, cost-effective and quicker process for families. These options offer a better way for even the most-difficult cases, alleviating the negative and harmful effects of the adversarial legal system for families and their children.
Divorce:
Know your options
At FWLLS, we offer a range of services designed to safeguard the interests and futures of individuals and families. With a commitment to honesty, integrity, personalized advocacy, and strategic legal counsel, Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions ensures every client receives comprehensive support, tailored to their unique needs and their family. Our Illinois family law services include:
- Collaborative Divorce
- Mediation
- Uncontested Divorce
- Legal Separation
- Pre-Marital (Pre-nuptial) Agreements
There is a Better Way
At Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions, Attorney Mike Biederstadt has taken his wealth of experience in divorce litigation and years of attempting to navigate an adversarial legal system to develop an innovative approach to divorce through a process known as a Collaborative Divorce. This approach is the ideal option for families, especially for parents of minor children. It is designed for couples seeking a dignified and private resolution to their divorce outside the courtroom. In collaborative divorce, both spouses engage in a process grounded in mutual respect and transparency, committing to a pledge to not go to court and to resolve their divorce at a table, in meetings, with the assistance of their respective Collaborative Attorneys.
This approach emphasizes a solutions-based strategy that considers the needs of both spouses and, more importantly, the well-being of their children. The aim is to reach a consensus that prevents the emotional and financial strain of litigation, focusing on preserving family relationships and ensuring the children’s interests are at the forefront of discussions.
Through face-to-face meetings involving the couple, their attorneys, and any chosen professional experts, this method fosters open communication and models collaborative problem-solving. It places control back in the hands of the spouses, rather than leaving critical life decisions to the discretion of a judge and attorneys, who do not know their family. This framework not only encourages the voluntary disclosure of information and the use of neutral experts but also upholds the privacy and dignity of everyone involved. By committing to this process, spouses engage in good faith negotiations, directed towards solutions that best reflect the family’s needs and are more likely to be respected and followed by both parties.
Collaborative Divorce Law
A collaborative divorce is a private, confidential and non-adversarial process. Both parties hire their own attorneys and any other experts they choose. Everyone refers to themselves as a member of the “team” and signs a contract requiring them to settle the case without going to court (“Participation Agreement”). The concept is a settlement-only approach, conducted outside of the court system, where everyone is required to act in a transparent, honest and cooperative manner to resolve the entire case in private and behind closed doors. The commitment to a collaborative divorce requires that if the process fails, the case will need to be handed over to trial lawyers to litigate in court. Although this may sound harsh or unappealing, it is actually what makes this option successful, because it removes the threat of going to court and no one wants to start over after investing the time and effort.
The lawyers and experts must be trained and certified as mediators and collaborative practitioners. The collaborative process differs from mediation, because each party has their own active counsel to privately assist them. Additionally, the parties can decide to bring in team members with their own expertise to assist in various roles. For example, a therapist (“family specialist”) with education and experience in child development can assist your family in negotiating the parenting issues and help your kids through the process. A neutral (“financial specialist”) can collect all your financial records and assist you and your spouse with any budgeting, tax, financial and retirement planning issues you may have. This division of responsibilities allows the lawyers to focus on legal issues. This approach allows each member of the team to concentrate on their select role at a fraction of the cost of an attorney, who would typically fulfill all these roles during litigation. After nearly 20 years of litigating and seeing parenting issues cause two-three years of litigation, it’s amazing to see parents attend two meetings with a therapist (“child specialist”) and have all the parenting issues resolved peacefully in 30-60 days.
A collaborative divorce is generally less expensive and much quicker than litigation. It encourages healthy communication, keeps children out of the controversy and helps couples maintain their integrity, respect and dignity throughout the process. Collaboration can go at whatever pace the couple wishes, avoids all procedural requirements mandated in court, and allows for much greater flexibility and creative problem-solving. Like mediation, it requires a commitment from both parties to the process and helps them civilly resolve their divorce in a strategic, smart and healthy manner.
Mediation
Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions offers mediation services as a forward-thinking solution for families facing divorce or other family law issues without the need to pause their lives, even when the court system seems to be at a standstill. This approach allows individuals to quickly and cost-effectively move forward with their decisions and lives by engaging in a process that emphasizes self-determination and cooperation. Mediation is an effective alternative to the traditional litigation process, which often involves lengthy court appearances, motions, and the stress of evidentiary hearings where a judge, who does not know you, your family or your children, makes binding decisions based on legal formalities.
Mediation is a voluntary, private and confidential process in which a neutral and impartial mediator assists the parties in negotiating their differences. Mediation can save time and money, encourage increased involvement of the parties and allow for creative solutions. The goal of mediation is to separate the people from the problem; focus on interests, not positions; generate options for mutual gain; and allow the parties to come to a mutual agreement. For mediation to be successful, it requires a commitment from both parties, because it’s voluntary, and either party can terminate the process at any time.
At the conclusion of mediation, the mediator will prepare a “Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)” representing the terms of their agreement. Typically the mediator will then make a recommendation of like-minded attorneys for the couple to retain as their counsel, who will assist in preparing the necessary paperwork and submitting it to the court for approval in order to finalize their divorce.
Our Oakbrook Terrace mediation services strive to empower each spouse to resolve their disputes outside of court, with the mediator providing support and guidance, allowing for outcomes that are more tailored to the unique needs of the family. Once an agreement is reached, it is formalized and submitted for court approval, offering a streamlined path to resolution that is both respectful and efficient.
Uncontested Divorce
The quickest and cheapest way to resolve a divorce is through direct negotiations with the assistance of one attorney. It simplifies the process, allows for more flexibility in scheduling and minimizes the expense of attorneys billing astronomical fees to communicate with each other and their clients throughout the entirety of the process. Now to be clear, attorneys are bound by their ethical obligations to represent the interests of their client. Yet, if both spouses agree to ground rules and trust the attorney that is assisting them in these negotiations, it is an option for spouses to negotiate their divorce with the assistance of one attorney. In this option, which we like to call an “uncontested divorce,” both spouses may interview the attorney, agree to ground rules, one spouse will formally retain the attorney, an agreement is negotiated in meetings and once an agreement is reached, the lawyer will prepare all the paperwork. Once everything has been reviewed and approved by both parties, the spouse who did not retain the lawyer assisting them, can then hire their own attorney for two hours of their time: one hour to review the agreement and another to meet with that spouse to discuss their rights, the law, the terms of the agreement that has been prepared and whether it is fair. This option minimizes the expense of working with two attorneys and allows the process and scheduling to move swiftly.
Our approach to divorce
Divorce demands a nuanced approach that respects the emotional and financial stakes involved, especially in cases involving young children or significant assets. Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions recognizes the uniqueness of each divorce for Illinois residents, offering dedicated, thoughtful and personalized support through a difficult time in our client’s lives. Whether clients are high-net-worth individuals or young parents, this firm stands ready to guide them toward a resolution that honors their goals and allows them to divorce with dignity.
Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions delves into the heart of each case, acknowledging the personal journey of every client through this pivotal life transition. Our firm’s approach is rooted in empathy and strategic planning. The process is simple: starting with an outline of each spouse’s view of the best possible outcome, to developing a strategy to handle the case from the beginning through the date a final agreement is reached. Whenever possible, Family Law Attorney Mike Biederstadt will try to minimize the length of the case, the cost and impact on families by finding ways to reach an amicable solution to issues.
At FWLLS, we recommend that clients begin their journey with our office by attending an Educational Strategy Session, where we will educate them on all their divorce options: Collaborate, Mediate, Litigate or proceed with an Uncontested Divorce. We will analyze the differences between each approach, the benefits and disadvantages of each option, along with the respective costs. If possible, we prefer to meet with both spouses in an Educational Strategy Session, so we can explore their options and make a decision on the best way to serve their family right then and there. This allows both spouses to receive the same information, weigh their options, establish their goals, fears and begin this process aligned on how they wish to proceed. Based on our experience, it is extremely important that families are aware of their options before making a decision that will determine the quality of their life and affect their family, finances and future for generations to come.
Premarital (Prenuptial) Agreements
Our family law firm is committed to ensuring our Illinois clients are treated with respect and understand all of their options for resolution of their legal challenges. Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions is proud of the diversity of the clients we have served throughout the Chicagoland area, and we are committed to earning your trust. Book a call with our firm to learn more about how we might guide you through your family law legal issues.
Marriage: The Most Important Decision You Will Ever Make
Every 42 seconds, there is a divorce in America. Statistically, every marriage has a 40-50% chance of ending in divorce. The most important decision you will make in life is who you choose to marry. This singular decision will have the greatest impact on the direction and quality of your future. So, what would it be worth to your family, friends or children to know if their selection of a spouse is a wise choice, or the biggest mistake of their life before it was too late?
Understanding the value
Family Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions (FWLLS) utilizes a wealth of knowledge and experience in both family law and estate planning to advise couples on crafting comprehensive premarital or prenuptial agreements. These agreements serve as the foundation for a strong marriage, providing peace of mind and clarity regarding their family’s future, finances and respective responsibilities. After 20 years of witnessing the reasons that couples get divorced and the pitfalls of poor estate planning, we know how to prevent life’s most common legal problems: Divorce, Disability and Death. In order to do so, our firm assists engaged couples in formulating a plan for their marriage, evaluating their goals, assets, debts, and educating them on the law and the business of marriage. Our process will allow couples to know they are making a wise choice before walking down the aisle, ensuring that they know the law, their respective rights and safeguard their financial interests, and well-being of their children.
Our Approach Is Different
Now, just to be clear, most attorneys do not approach prenups in the same way we do. Most attorneys simply focus on drafting a contract delineating the terms of your future divorce. But that’s not our style. We consider this a healthy exercise between couples, and our role is not to create a problem for a happy couple by focusing on their potential divorce, but instead, to facilitate a discussion that will serve as the foundation for their family’s future.
We Are Committed
At FWLLS, we are committed to ensuring Illinois families and our family law clients are treated with the respect and compassion that they deserve. Family, Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions is committed to earning the trust of the clients we serve throughout the Chicagoland area. If you’d like to learn more and discuss the options available to you, book a strategy call with our firm to learn more about how we might guide you through your family law legal issues.
Be Proactive
It’s okay to ask for help.
We understand how important it is to keep our clients updated about their cases and to be accessible through such a difficult time. That is why we utilize the latest technology, where we can keep our clients apprised through our online portal, where you will be able to keep up to date and access every detail related to your case, appointments or important documents online. In addition, we pride ourselves on being accessible to our clients and will work tirelessly to ensure that you, your family and your children are cared for at every step of the way.