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Collaborative divorce is a form which is relatively new to the San Diego area. However, this form has achieved great popularity in the San Francisco Bay and the Minneapolis/St. Paul areas. Collaborative divorce was recently highlighted on the national television program "60 Minutes" and in the magazines "Reader’s Digest" and "San Diego Lawyer." Along with several other San Diego professionals, in January 2001, attorney Klueck participated in an extensive training program in the Phoenix area in the theory and practice of collaborative divorce.

Collaborative divorce involves elements of both other forms of divorce, litigation and mediation. Like litigation, each party is represented by their own attorney. Like mediation, information must be freely shared and the utmost of good faith is required. Also, like mediation, collaborative divorce is very useful when the parties will likely have future dealings with each other due to children, family or business connections.

A form of collaborative divorce involves other professionals assisting the parties. The parties could each retain a trained mental health professional to serve as a divorce "coach." The coach is usually the same gender as the divorcing party and assists the divorcing spouse in communicating with the other spouse and with other psycho-emotional aspects of the divorce. Where there are minor children involved, another mental health professional can aid as a children’s assistant. Additionally, collaborative parties often employ a joint financial planner to assist them in arranging their financial survival in a post-divorce world.

Although the assistance of any or all of these other professionals may be desirable in any given case, only the two collaborative attorneys are absolutely required for the process of collaborative law to work. (Divorce coaches are often desirable, but not necessary, additions to the collaborative team. Such coaches may not be employed depending upon the finances and emotional requirements of any given case. However, if one party employs such a coach, both parties must, or there will be an intolerable imbalance and the process cannot function properly.)