From Physician to Divorce Attorney

This is a guest post by Jim Kelly

One of the Best Intellectual Property Lawyers to Date

What many physicians find most rewarding about their job skills is that they learn the value of compassion and empathy. In caring for their patients, they make deep emotional bonds they allow them to take pride in their careers. However, as all too many people are aware, the health care industry is less today about compassion than it is about profits. Many physicians come to this realization in sadness, and decide they no longer wish be a part of the machine.

As anyone who has ever gone through a divorce knows fully well, the process of terminating a marriage can be an incredibly painful and trying one. This is precisely why the characteristics of compassion and empathy are what are needed in order to make a good divorce lawyer. Perhaps ironically, a physician seeking respite from the healthcare industry may actually find a home in divorce court.

On top of the hurt and disappointment that a failed marriage inevitably brings, partners that decide to separate must then prolong this pain by negotiating out their separation in the arenas of finances, assets, children, and other shared items. For some couples, splitting up their assets and their pets can be a relatively straightforward process, all things considering. For others, however, the personalities involved, the lack of legal differentiation, and the length of the marriage may all coalesce to make the process slow and acrimonious.

This is why human compassion and the judicious weighing of people over profits is important. As Morgan Chu, Partner at Irell & Manella LLP, says: "No matter what the basic background or content the cases may involve, whether it's complex contracts or patents, they involve tests of credibility, credibility of the human beings who are testifying, credibility of the positions of the parties."

Here is a sampling of the careers that you may wish to seek accreditation for so that you can transfer you people skills and passion for helping others into a more fulfilling career:

-Shared Attorney. A shared lawyer is a divorce attorney who represents – and works with – both partners going through a separation. This type of lawyer is best used by couples who are separating on good terms and who can agree on all major issues. The attorney’s purpose is to work out minor disagreements, file paperwork, and generally insure that the divorce is a quick and painless one.

-Collaborative Attorney. This is another legal option that should be pursued by couples that are working through the divorce process in an amicable manner. A collaborative attorney is a lawyer who is hired to work with another collaborative attorney -- one that represents the other spouse. The two attorneys work together to secure an agreeable divorce for both parties.

This collaborative option is best used by couples who want to separate amicably but cannot agree on major divisions on their own. If an out-of-court agreement cannot be reached between the two parties and the collaborative attorneys, the couple will need to retain new lawyers before going to court.

-Legal Mediator. A legal mediator plays a similar role as a shared attorney for those parties who can easily agree on the major divorce issues. The difference between the two options generally comes down to price and paperwork needs. While a legal mediator will likely be cheaper than using a shared attorney, such a person will leave all financial and divorce paperwork for the couple to fill out on their own.

-Traditional Divorce Attorney. Finally, when all of these above options are not practical or feasible, a person can use a traditional divorce attorney – one who will try to maximize the assets retained and will not hesitate from taking a major issue to court. Such an attorney is often necessary when considerable financial resources, young children, or confrontational personalities are involved.

These are the main options for those seeking to transition into a career divorce law. For physicians looking to escape the turbulence of the health care industry, it may be well worth the additional studying and accreditation in order to pursue a career that utilizes your natural gifts of compassion and empathy.

About the author:

Jim Kelly is an online blogger focused on education, career, science, and research. He has found online writing to be a passion of his due to the ability to write on numerous topic to numerous audiences. Kim has been reading and writing on those topics for years and you can find some more of Jim's writing at theeducationupdate.com