Collaborative practice groups market themselves as a group of professionals who each do different things in the divorce process. On its face, that sounds great. However, what it boils down to is this:

You pay more because you have to hire more than one person to get your divorce completed. It drives up the cost, increases the time, and adds to the stress because you have to explain your circumstances to a new person each time.

There is only so much overlap in the file, so there will inevitably be some reinventing of the wheel with each new professional whose services you enlist.

For several years, I accepted a limited caseload to have time to further my skill set. The result is a mediation practice unique in the Portland metropolitan area (and probably unique throughout Oregon) that caters to clients who want the convenience, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness of a one-office solution for their divorce mediation.

I have taken the time to get the necessary training and practice the skills required to provide, in one office, all of the services that a divorcing client is likely to need.

You don't have to settle for a practitioner who focuses on only one aspect of the process. I do not want you to have to choose between spending extra money or going without a full complement of services.

• I have a law degree (J.D.). Not all mediators in the Portland area do.

• If you need divorce coaching and parenting plan expertise, you do NOT need to hire a separate divorce coach and parenting plan expert. I have 21 years of experience doing that for client families, building on seven years as a K-12 educator before I became a mediator.

• If you want to understand the financial nuances of your divorce to ensure that your proposed settlement ideas are financially sound, financial analysis, you do NOT need to hire a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst. I've gone through CDFA training and more. I have furthered my knowledge by becoming a Family Law Financial Analyst and have created an innovative financial curriculum for divorce professionals concerning the financial aspects of divorce.

• To incorporate your preteen and teenage children's feedback into the divorce process, as you should, you do NOT need to hire a separate child-inclusive mediator; you will already have one. I have included teens and tweens in my divorce mediation process since I opened my practice in 2005.

• If you need a Notary Public, you do NOT need to search for one. I provide notary services to current and former clients, free of charge.

Even with this comprehensive bevy of services unmatched in any individual office in the Portland mediation community, I am pleased to maintain the lowest overall fees of any law-degreed mediator in the Portland area with comparable experience.

​​Collaboration is not a problem. In fact, I enjoy collaborating with professionals in many different fields. I have a broad and deep professional network so that I can refer clients to specialists when outside of my direct expertise.

It is important and necessary to work together with other professionals with a variety of expertise, as I do not try to provide every service. The services that Matthew has become trained to provide are the specific ones that most collaborative practitioners do only one of.

When collaboration is appropriate