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Hi everyone, welcome to another Family Law Matters. We’ll call this Family Law Matters Part 2. I’m Dr. Michael Mantell and I’m joining Bonnie Rabinovitch-Mantel who is the owner and managing partner of the Primus Family Law Group. Hi Bonnie.

Hi Michael. How are you doing today for our Part 2? Part 2. We’ve never done a Part 2 but last week we talked about co-parenting tools and you raised some really important and I think eye-opening tools that lots of people may not have even considered. Apps, a class.

Tell us about the class again real quickly. So there’s a really, there’s a really amazing co-parenting class where which is often like I said last week ordered by the court but you don’t have to wait for the court to order it for you guys to do it. It’s called Kids Turn and you take the same class material but separate from each other so everybody can do it on their schedule but you’re learning the same material as the other parent with whom you’re expected to co-parent.

And you mentioned a number of apps but I want to go through those again but the Part 2 of this that extended this was we had a discussion right after we finished filming the last one and that was this. Are parents required to take the same class, use the same apps? Well if it’s court ordered yes because they want you to get the same material. You can google online co-parenting classes and there will be a bunch.

There’s a bunch but some of them are better than others. Some you get what you pay for kind of thing and if you’re doing the same one especially one that the court routinely uses you’re learning some valuable skills that you both know. With respect to the apps if you can’t then you have to use the same one because it won’t work like you can’t cross pollinate I guess.

I mean if one person’s using Talking Parents and one person’s using Our Family Wizard the information’s not going to cross over. You got to be using the same app and have this and it you know invite each other to share that so you can have the same access. And if parents what about parents who say I’m going to go find my own coach or therapist? Does that mean the other parent has to be in a co-parenting therapy or coaching kind of relationship as well? No I mean usually if the court orders only one in is because there’s reasons only one needs to be in coaching or therapy.

But if they want feel that there’s both then they will order individual therapy. They obviously do not expect the two parents to do the same therapist. That’s a problem.

That’s a conflict of interest. But otherwise if you just as a parent want to go and get life coaching or therapy voluntarily have at it. Go do that.

Absolutely you can learn skills that help how you react to the other parent and that by in itself is going to alleviate some of the co-parenting issues. But yeah if it’s not court ordered and one parent says no I heard bad things about that app oh a friend of mine went to that class and they didn’t like it. What happens if they disagree on which path to take? If it’s not court ordered each of them can do a as many co-parenting classes as they want to do to help them with as many different skills in co-parenting.

I prefer when clients do things voluntarily. I think it shows the judge that you’re really thinking about things that don’t work and trying to make changes for your children’s best interests. That’s awesome.

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Who pays for these classes or apps? Each individual. They’re not the apps are not that expensive. The Our Family Wizard I think is like a hundred bucks.

Talking Parents is a little bit less than that. And these classes are honestly reasonable because the point is to get access to people so that they can help them so they’re not financially burdensome. One parent can say well I don’t want to go but if you want to go and you want me to go you have to pay for it.

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No that’s not usually how that’s done. The court even doesn’t do that. They want you vested in it and it’s again it’s pretty reasonable.

If people have questions about this they’ve tried to get it it hasn’t worked or they’re interested in getting more information about this tell us they can be in touch with you for more. They can reach us directly 619-574-8000 and if you have any questions about any family law issue we will put you on my calendar for a free 30-minute telephone or zoom consultation and you can reach us online at www.primusfamilylaw.com. There’s a live chat agent who can get you connected and there’s also a form to fill if you want to go that route.