You know how people think lawyers cost a fortune and often add to the conflict?

Well, both of those things can be true, but I’m not that kind of lawyer and MELCA is not that kind of organisation.

Here’s a one question quiz. If you were or are separating, who would you call first? That is, after family and friends.

If you answered “a lawyer”, you would be with the other 70% of Australians who said the same thing. And if you said that was because you didn’t know who else to call, you’d still be with the majority.

And, most importantly of all, if you said you’d only call a lawyer reluctantly, you’d also be in the majority.  And that’s the part of the answer that interested us enough to establish MELCA.

I used to be a litigation lawyer, meaning that sometimes I went to Court with my clients, and if we were negotiating to stay out of Court, that was still the threat of court hanging over us all.

And court is a threat for people going through separation. It takes forever, costs at least tens of thousands of dollars and in many, many cases more than a hundred thousand dollars per person.

If you go to court, you can be sure that every remaining bit of goodwill that you and your ex have for each other will evaporate. Right now, you might be so angry with your ex that you wish they’d go and live in a basement, and you mightn’t care at all about goodwill towards them, or their stupid new partner!

What you need to know about court is that evaporating goodwill is just one side effect, but that every conflict will be magnified and grow. And you know what that does? It makes the litigation longer and more expensive, and you will join another majority group that talks about lawyers’ picnics. That’s because courts are about picking winners. And for every winner there is a loser, and the loser just might be you.

MELCA focuses on your and your children’s future, and working out the best ways to get you there. That’s why our psychologists and financial planners are just as front and centre as the lawyers, and often more so. At MELCA, you’ll find a professional team of people who have worked with thousands of separating people over their careers, and who want to help you manage conflict, make sure your family can still function as a family, and help make sure your money is put to its best use for all of you.

Call (03) 9078 6980 or enquire online for the complete personalised approach to separation without court.