You Must Use an MHP (Mental Health Professional) in Collaborative Divorce teams

May 21, 2024

From the desk of My Collaborative Team President, Edward S. Sachs, ACP

It is always troubling to me when I hear of Collaborative communities who still don’t utilize a mental health professional in their cases.

I know that one of the tougher things to convince clients of is the need for the mental health professional in a Collaborative matter.  I am here to tell you they are a MUST!

I’m reminded of the time we had a team meeting in a new case that proves that point.

Unfortunately, despite an income of around $200,000 the couple has no net worth and balked at using an MHP due to the cost.  It was hard to argue.  They had no money.  They scraped up just enough money to hire me to give them some help.  However, the couple was fighting like cats and dogs and we had to figure a way to do this.  There was just enough money in one attorney’s trust account to pay for an MHP for a two-hour team meeting.  We had to give it a shot.

The session began with the MHP meeting individually with each of the clients.  Then we began the team meeting.  With the guidance of our mental health professional extraordinaire the team was able to guide this couple to a realization of financial and lifestyle changes they would need to make immediately.  They left the team meeting with a plan and with goals for settlement.

As the couple got ready to leave the meeting, the husband commented on how great the synergy of the team was during this meeting.  They couldn’t have been more satisfied with the Process.

One thing that was very clear both to the professional team and the clients.  We couldn’t have done it without our MHP.

Thankfully, most of the Collaborative attorneys I work with won’t do a Collaborative matter without an MHP.  Divorce is an emotional upheaval and clients come to us in distress.  Possibly the most important member of the team is the person with the professional qualifications to handle those emotional issues.