Settling Your Montana Divorce

Most divorce cases I handle end in settlement. This is a good thing. As I often tell my clients, as difficult as it may be for you to reach an agreement with your spouse, such a result is far better than the judge (a total stranger) making all the decisions. For this reason, settlement conferences and mediations are a vital part of any divorce case I handle. With that in mind, here are some tips I encourage clients to keep in mind when we go in to settlement talks:

• In order to reach a settlement, each party must be willing to make concessions. You have to give something up in order to gain something else.


• It is unreasonable to expect a party to settle for a property division that represents their worst possible outcome at trial. Likewise, it is unreasonable for a party to receive what represents their best possible outcome at trial.


• If a case is not settled, then each party gives up all control over the outcome of the case. Intimate and important decisions about the functioning of your family will be decided by a total stranger.


• If a case is not settled, then each party gives up the chance to get divorced immediately and faces increased time (and cost) while waiting and preparing for trial.