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For the client, divorce is usually an emotional and chaotic event.  Rightfully so. There is loss.  There is grievance.  There is often resentment.  There is undoubtedly disagreement on some level.  But for the family law practitioner, the client is well served by guidance down a defined, orderly path.  Of course, the process takes time and with that, opportunity to be knocked off the path.  However, there is an end and it's important and comforting to understand how you'll get there.  For the individual about to go through the process, here are the basics.

The categories of issues that must be resolved in a divorce can be easily grouped into the following topics which, together, form the acronym, "PEACE."  Today's entry is an introduction to the acronym and some more in depth discussion regarding the first issue.

P - Parental Responsibility / Timesharing

E - Equitable Distribution

A - Alimony

C - Child Support

E - Everything Else - (including Attorneys Fees!) 

Parental Responsibility / Timesharing.  When there are minor children involved, the issues of how decision-making will occur and where the children will reside need to be resolved.  Parental responsibility is the decision-making component and can be further broken down into day-to-day decisions and major life decisions.  Major life decisions are the bigger decisions in a child's life.  Examples would be decisions on the topics of education, religion and health care.  Day-to-day decisions are just that.  What to have for lunch, what to watch on TV, and the like.  There can be argument of overlap between the two types, but for the vast majority of divorced parents out there, this issue shakes out as you might expect.  Generally, the Court will order Shared Parental Responsibility.  That means both parents must agreed on major life decisions for the kids.  The alternative is Sole Parental Responsibility, meaning that only one parent makes major decisions.  It's seldom ordered but still an available remedy and if the situation is appropriate, it may be the right remedy for your case.  It is important to understand that the Court may order Sole Parental Responsibility on one or more issues, such as medical treatment, without ordering it on the rest of the major decisions.

 Timesharing is what was once known as "Custody" and "Visitation" and describes the schedule each parent has with the children.  It is a component of the child support equation as discussed later in this article.  There are model plans generally utilized by the Court,  although no model is mandatory.  The timesharing arrangement ultimately utilized by the Court should be in the best interests of the children.  Several factors are scrutinized by the Court in coming to its conclusion.  One issue divorcing spouses should consider is that they likely have a far better understanding of their children's needs than can possibly be communicated at trial.  Accordingly, if a parent seeks a timesharing schedule outside the models, he or she may wish to more heavily weigh the value of pre-trial settlement.  Settlement, be it through direct negotiation or mediation, provides the parties with more flexibility in resolving the case, particularly in establishing a workable timesharing plan.