As a society, we are fascinated by the wealthy—we constantly scrutinize and analyze their lifestyles and decisions, trying to learn what it is that sets them apart and allows them to be so successful. 

Many millionaires or billionaires actually come from middle class backgrounds and they understand value.  Even though they have a lot of money to spend, they still make it a priority to make sure they are getting the most “bang for their buck”. 

This approach was recently highlighted in the Dallas Business Journal in an article mentioning Texas oil tycoon and billionaire T. Boone Pickens.  Pickens chose the Collaborative Process for his most recent divorce not because he is wealthy, but because he understands the value. 

Many perspective clients who are in the beginning stages of shopping around for an attorney question the Team concept when I explain the Collaborative Process—they assume having an entire Team of Collaborative Professionals to help them through their divorce is an extravagance.  The truth is, Collaborative provides the best value for the money.  Depending on the complexity of the case, the legal fees may end up being the same as if the clients had litigated (though statistics show on average, the average traditional contested divorce takes 18+ months to resolve and costs $30,000, while most Collaborative cases take 6-9 months to resolve, and even with a full team of professionals, cost $15,000 on average), but it saves money in the long term.  The family is able to better move forward from the divorce and the couple tends to be more satisfied with the outcome, reducing the likelihood of having to go back to court for post-judgment issues.   Consider this:  90% of litigated cases end up back in court, compared to only 10% of cases initially handled within the Collaborative Process.