I Just Want This Done: How Smart, Successful People Get Divorced without Losing their Kids, Money, and Minds

How to Move on With Your Life Without Losing Everything

Divorce is the intersection of everything we hold dear in life: love, sex, money, and children. When those are threatened, people get angry. Logical and reasoned decision-making spirals to power plays and finger-pointing, and potentially open warfare. Without a clear head, divorce is a lose-lose for everyone except the lawyers.

It doesn't have to be that way. Family law attorney Raiford Palmer has helped clients find a faster, more peaceful, less costly alternative to "World War III" divorce cases. Unfortunately, some divorce lawyers (and their clients who don't know better) fight it out, at great expense to the divorcing spouses. Worse, divorcing parties fail to consider the all-important cost-benefit analysis to assess their chances in a case, so they end up chasing legal strategies that are not worth the trouble.

In I Just Want This Done, Raif guides the reader through the divorce process, from filing through resolution. With step-by-step advice, practical tips, and never-do-at-any-cost warnings, I Just Want This Done teaches:

• What matters and what doesn't in divorce
• How to know if reconciliation is possible or not
• How typical legal advice risks everything
• How to choose the right divorce lawyer
• How to be a smart client
• The 22 myths most people believe about divorce
• Your four case resolution options
• What the "meta case" is and how to win it
• The four true costs of divorce and how to minimize them
• How to protect your business and career during divorce
• The do's and don'ts of child custody
• How (and why) to hire a divorce coach
• How to handle new significant others
• How to not be painted as a jerk

If you want to avoid the divorce swamp, regain control of your future, and keep your kids, money, mind, and happiness, this book is for you.

ISBN-13: 9781737208914

Media Type: Hardcover

Publisher: E. James Publishing Company - Inc.

Publication Date: 07-15-2021

Pages: 316

Product Dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.88(d)

Raiford Dalton Palmer, J.D., AAML is a long-time Illinois family law attorney and managing shareholder of STG Divorce Law based in Chicagoland where he focuses on complex divorce cases, especially those involving high net worth individuals. His work includes collaborative divorce, mediation, child custody, and post-divorce matters, as well as premarital and post-marital agreements. He has successfully won multiple jury and bench trials and managed numerous successful arbitrations and mediations. Raiford has also argued an appeal before the Illinois Appellate Court. A multi-year winner of client service awards from Avvo.com as well as a multiple awardee of the SuperLawyer and LeadingLawyer designation for family law in Illinois, he is a frequent lecturer on Illinois divorce law and law firm management topics. Raiford is also a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and the Collaborative Law Institute of Illinois.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Preface

Chapter 1: A Dire Situation

Chapter 2: Is It Too Late?

Chapter 3: How to Turn $5 Million into $500,000 the Hard Way

Chapter 4: How to Choose the Right Divorce Lawyer

Chapter 5: How to Be a Savvy Client

Chapter 6: Divorce Myths

Chapter 7: Case Resolution Options

Chapter 8: The Meta Case

Chapter 9: The Four True Costs of Divorce

Chapter 10: Stages of Grief and the Decoupling Mindset

Chapter 11: The Value of Divorce Coaches

Chapter 12: Owning a Business: What Happens When She (or He) Wants Out?

Chapter 13: Custody: Navigating Parenting Issues (Dos and Don'ts Related to Parenting)

Chapter 14: Self-Care during Divorce

Chapter 15: Crisis Cases

Chapter 16: The Evil Spouse Handbook

Chapter 17: Dealing with the Narcissistic Spouse

Chapter 18: How to Not Be a Jerk before, during, and after Divorce

Chapter 19: Rebuilding Your Life When the Marriage Is Over

Conclusion: The Last Word