The TransitionBinder magazine
Working guidance for divorce coaches and family mediators on scope, ethics, documents, deadlines and the economics of a separation practice.
Nine articles, all published September 4, 2026, written by Jimenez Julien for the coaches and mediators who carry a client file from intake through the final decree.
checklist
A financial disclosure intake list built around what state courts actually require, ordered so a client can collect it in one weekend without freezing halfway through the pile.
regulation and compliance
Unauthorized practice of law is defined state by state, and the safe zone is narrower than most new coaches assume. Here is how to read the rule and phrase your work inside it.
comparison
Three fee structures, compared on cash flow, scope creep, refund exposure and how each one behaves when a case stalls for four months waiting on a court date.
field report
Information asymmetry stalls more mediations than hostility does. A walkthrough of how experienced mediators surface undisclosed accounts and rebalance the room without taking sides.
practical guide
Service windows, mandatory disclosure periods, waiting periods and QDRO follow through. A map of the recurring deadline points a coach or mediator can reliably monitor.
mistakes to avoid
The failure points are predictable: undefined scope, being pulled into attorney work, unbilled crisis calls and no visible progress during discovery lulls. Each one has a fix.
numbers and benchmarks
A line by line breakdown of the cost stack: filing fees, attorney retainers and hourly rates, experts, custody evaluations, QDRO drafting and the recurring charges clients never budget for.
case study
Follow one pension and one 401k through division, from the decree language to plan administrator approval, and see why an IRA transfer takes an entirely different path.
trends and outlook
Automated filing tools, court self help portals and virtual mediation are absorbing the document assembly layer. The judgment and coordination work is moving in the other direction.
Every article here answers one question a working practice actually asks. Start with the binder question and work down, or jump to the one that is on your desk this week at The Divorce Practice.
Almost every question in a separation engagement comes back to a date and who is watching it. The deadline guide lays out the full timeline of a US divorce and marks the points a coach or mediator can reliably track.
What are the deadlines in a typical US divorce case that I need to track for my client?
Then work outward: the eight other pieces in The Divorce Practice each take one part of it further, and every one links back here.
