Mastering Crucial Moments in Separation and Divorce: A Multidisciplinary Guide to Excellence in Practice and Outcome

I have just finished reading Mastering Crucial Moments in Separation and Divorce. I have been practicing law for nearly 39 years, and I have been representing clients in the Collaborative Family Law Process for nearly 20 of those years. The day after finishing Kate's and Lisa's new work I began a new Collaboative case with a professional team that had never before worked together, with two very intense clients facing critical financial and emotional issues. The primacy of the lessons learned helped me handle the sacred moments which unfolded around our table in ways our basic trainings can only aspire to inspire. This book will help take you to the next level. I am confident that this work will become an invaluable resource for both our professional community and for all those who are facing, or will face, the dark chaos of separation and divorce. I feel privileged, as I read the words, to envision in my mind’s eye and ear a shared passion for the work we love. Well done and thank you!

This is an excellent book that offers valuable insights for professionals and aspiring practitioners in a variety of helping professions, including the law. I assign it to the students in my Collaborative Law and Practice class and recommend it as a supplementary text to my colleagues who teach both Family Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution. The authors present important concepts and strategies to enable professionals to understand and serve their clients and to help those clients navigate difficult transitions, such as divorce and family reorganization. The book also describes concrete skills and techniques for accomplishing these important professional tasks. The supplemental study modules at the end of the book provide excellent teaching and learning tools – both for classroom use and for self-directed professional development.

This book is a valuable multidisciplinary resource for professionals who wish to assist, advice and support couples or individuals through divorce. As a financial professional who works regularly with couples and individuals on the financial and tax aspects of their divorce, I learned new tools and techniques and gained a higher level of insight towards helping clients achieve a successful outcome in their divorce. Kate Scharff and Lisa Herrick write with honesty, clarity, and sense of humor and personal perspective that will keep the reader engaged and actively thinking long after the last page is read.

As a clinical psychologist, I found Lisa Herrick and Kate Scharff's latest book to be a welcome and essential guide to working with clients going through divorce. For therapists new to this specialty, the book provides an extremely helpful framework for thinking through critical issues and implementing specific techniques to help clients navigate the divorce process in as healthy a manner as possible. For those with years of experience, the model of conceptualizing divorce as a "developmental crisis" and tailoring interventions based on the client's movement on the "Rigidity/Flexibility Continuum" adds valuable insight. I highly recommend this book.

The author's description of divorce as an extremely difficult yet ordinary part of human development that can be transformative, provides a helpful framework for professionals to think about their work and for everyone touched by divorce to think about their experience. The book marries sophisticated theory with many practical techniques that professionals can use to understand and help their clients through this difficult time in their lives. Just as importantly, the book helps professionals process their own experiences in a way that will allow them to be more effective in their work. The use of examples from the authors' many years of experience in the field is particularly helpful. I would highly recommend this book to attorneys, mental health professionals, and others working in the divorce field.

This book is a must read for divorce professionals. The framework of seeing the client relationship in developmental terms really clicked for me. The authors guide the professional from first meeting through resolution, providing deep insights and great tips at each step along the path. They help us to examine our own roles and reactions so that we can be more effective in this work. As a family law attorney I will be returning to their wise guidance again and again.

As a social worker who specializes in separation and divorce, this book was extremely helpful in detailing the techniques and relationships that are beneficial to clients. Kate Scharff and Lisa Herrick have a wealth of knowledge and share their thoughts about how professionals can work to transform the difficult experience of separation and divorce into one that leads to growth. I highly recommend this book to any and all who work in this field.

This book is a great resource. Not only does it explain the psychology of client relationships in a way that can be easily understood, but it also includes many helpful practical tips. The book has a perfect mixture of concepts and practical applications.