Conflicts over children are painful and usually complex. Most parents feel unconditional love for their children and want to protect them after the separation. For many, the loss of family is a sad consequence of divorce.
Choosing mediation and children or collaborative divorce is a good alternative and avoids going to court. In both cases, agreements about the children, a parenting plan, and financial matters are made collaboratively under the guidance of the mediator, who is also a lawyer, or with each party having their own lawyer (collaborative divorce). In the latter case, the mediator is a lawyer who is also trained in collaborative practice and is a member of the VvCP (Association for Collaborative Family Practice).
When it comes to children and divorce, prudence and balanced decision-making are key. Mediation helps parents make agreements that work for the future, with their children's best interests in mind.
At Delissen Martens, we guide parents with legal and emotional care. Our mediators have extensive experience with mediation and children and will guide you through every step of the process.
According to Dutch law, as a stepparent you are obliged to contribute to the costs of your stepchild(ren). When are you legally a stepparent and when are you maintenance obligated for your stepchild(ren)? And is the stepparent's maintenance obligation the same as that of the legal/biological parent(s)? These questions are answered in this blog.
No one marries with the idea of divorcing each other at some point, yet 7.8 out of every 1,000 marriages stranded in 2021. After kicking off the dust, people then move on and sometimes that includes a new partner, or the new partner was already there and may even have been one of the reasons for the divorce (whether in the ex-partner's eyes or not). How do ex-spouses deal with this and what can you expect from your ex-partner in this regard?