When you and your spouse have decided that it is time to dissolve your same-sex marriage, it can be a stressful and painful time for both of you. This stress can be made even worse when you think about going to a court and having a judge determine what is best for you, your children and your shared property. Fortunately, getting a collaborative divorce can offer you and your spouse to work out issues without a judge present. Here are two reasons to choose this type of divorce.

Privacy

If you have never gone through a divorce before, you might not know that hearings are often open to the local public. Not only that, but information about your finances and other documents must also be filed with the court clerk and are a matter of public record. Many people do not like that this information can be easily obtained by unrelated parties.

A collaborative divorce allows you and your spouse to keep everything related to your marriage private. In most cases, your lawyers, your spouse and you are the only people who will have access to anything discussed throughout the process. Some lawyers with experience in collaborative divorce enlist the help of mental health professionals who serve to ensure that everyone involved is communicating well and processing their emotions properly. In such practices, the mental health professional will also know the details of your divorce.

Child Custody Agreements

A major source of stress during a divorce is determining what child custody and visitation might look like for your family when the marriage is no longer in place. In a traditional divorce case, as opposed to a collaborative divorce case, a judge will ultimately make those decisions. If your children are your spouse's kids from a previous marriage for example, an unsympathetic judge may decide that you have little to no rights regarding them. For a more equitable resolution to child-related issues, a collaborative divorce might allow you and your spouse to draw up a fair agreement about how to handle child custody and care issues.

Now that you have read about some reasons that collaborative divorce can work when you want to dissolve your same-sex marriage, seek out an LGBT divorce lawyer who can help you. Consult a number of lawyers in your local area to be sure you find one that is best suited to you and your needs.