Hennepin County ENE Lawyer
Divorce is a difficult and challenging time in someone's life, but some divorces involve issues that are straightforward enough to be fully resolved outside of divorce court.
Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE) allows for evaluation of social and financial issues arising in divorce to give an idea of how the issues would be resolved in divorce court. This allows for informed decision-making and often, faster resolution.
Contact our Minnesota early neutral evaluation attorney at the Dittrich Law Firm, P.A. today to learn more about the ENE process and how it can help you to confidently put your divorce behind you.
Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE) Process
Beginning in Hennepin County, ENE is designed to try to settle divorce cases prior to litigation. ENE is a voluntary program, with a fairly high success rate of around 70 percent, designed to weed out divorce cases that have relatively simple issues.
If successful, ENE can save a lot of angst and money. Fees for these services are relatively low compared to other kinds of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and are dictated by county courts. Moreover, the parties are still able to participate in divorce mediation or collaborative divorce if ENE is unsuccessful.
The process begins with an initial case management conference (ICMC). This presents an opportunity for the judge to meet with the parties immediately after one of the parties files their divorce pleadings with the court. The judge can explain the options available — off the record. Early neutral evaluation is conducted by neutral individuals assigned to the case. This allows the parties to explore the social and financial aspects of their divorce from an objective perspective.
Social Early Neutral Evaluation (SENE) is particularly important when a couple has minor children. A male and female assist the parties in reaching an agreement after interviewing both spouses and hearing what their concerns are with respect to parenting time schedules, holiday schedules and other issues related to custody. After they meet with the parties, they make a recommendation to the parties as to what they believe the outcome would be if they went to trial. This provides the parties with an objective perspective of the legal system and what their attorneys are able to do for them.
The parties have the option of adopting the recommendation, which is then submitted to the court, or to select another SENE, or to choose not to reach an agreement. Any agreement made is not binding until both parties have signed it.
Financial Early Neutral Evaluation (FENE) determines what kinds of assets and debt have been acquired in the marriage. It is conducted by one person with strong skills in finances who will assist the parties in creating a balance sheet in order to determine asset and debt division and child support. The FENE will often employ tools such as the Minnesota child support calculator.
As with the SENE, the FENE will make a recommendation that parties have the choice of adopting or rejecting.
Gregory Dittrich, Qualified FENE and SENE
Gregory Dittrich is a qualified social and financial early neutral evaluator and has represented parties in both FENE and SENE. Mr. Dittrich's education includes a Bachelors of Business Administration with a focus on Accounting. This background has served him, and his clients, well in the FENE process. He is also a mediator and arbitrator.
What might mean more is that he has gone through the divorce process himself. He uses his personal experience for the benefit of his clients, to avoid the pitfalls and mistakes made in his own divorce. He strongly recommends SENE because it puts focus on the needs of a couples' children. The process can spare the children some of the anxiety and hurt that is inevitable when their parents divorce.
Having received the training and participated in this process from both angles, Mr. Dittrich has a unique perspective. He understands how the process works and its value. For this reason he strongly advocates that his clients take advantage of the ENE process in an effort to lower costs and emotional turmoil.
Contact our Dakota and Hennepin County ENE lawyer in Woodbury today to learn more about how this process can benefit you and your family.
