5pm: Gathering – Light Dinner and Networking

5:30pm-5:40pm:  Introduction of Community Collaboration series

5:40pm-5:45pm: Tonight’s program overview.
•    Format and Agenda for Program
•    Introduction of Speakers/Participants

5:45-6:15: Role Play Skit

•    Distribution and summary of fact pattern
•    Introduction of players
•    Skit
•    Video clip
•    Neutrals

6:15pm -7:15pm:  Panel Discussion and Audience Participation

7:15pm -7:25pm:  Question and Answer Panel

7:25-7:30pm - Closing

Facilitators:

 Ms. Kaye has been trained in the Collaborative Divorce process. The Collaborative Divorce Process is the most humane way to ride the emotional roller coaster of divorce. Working with trained specialists (attorneys, divorce coaches, child specialist and financial specialist), empowers the family to come to a viable solution to the dissolution of marriage. She has been trained in the understanding based model of mediation.

Ms. Kaye is part of a collaborative divorce network comprised of attorneys and mental health professionals. www.cdrli.com designed to help divorcing couples and their families resolve their disputes in an open, non-adversarial manner and reach a mutually agreeable outcome, without litigation or a judge.
Ms Kaye was recently placed on the roster for both neutral evaluation and mediation of matrimonial cases in Nassau County by theSupreme Court of the State of New York Matrimonial Center. In 2017 she became a board member of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals.
Nancy Kaye was interviewed by The Associated Press on Divorce Planning. The article appeared online and throughout the country in May 2002. She was also quoted in Financial Advisor magazine, May 2002. Nancy Kaye was one of the speakers at the annual FPA Financial Planning Association) meeting in October 2005.
In April 2012, Nancy spoke at Hofstra Law School in their Collaborative Divorce class on how a Financial Neutral serves as a team member in the process of collecting data and developing "models" of alternatives for the financial settlement. Nancy was a guest speaker at the New York Association for Marriage and Family Therapy where she spoke on the financial aspects of PreNuptials in the Collaborative framework where both parties help in the drafting of an agreement that meets their mutual needs and goals. At Hofstra University, Nancy was a panel member on the discussion of Collaborative Divorce and it's financial issues. In 2014, Nancy was a panel member discussing Financial Issues in Divorce for attorneys, mental health professionals and other financial members."Creative Changes to Dysfunctional Systems: How creative people changed the way people divorce."

 Marcos Fernandez is a Managing Attorney at Vacca Family Law Group with a profound commitment to resolving complex family matters with empathy and pragmatism. Marcos exclusively employs a non-adversarial and collaborative approach to resolving matrimonial and family law matters. Before joining Vacca Family Law Group, Marcos gained nine years of experience in both matrimonial and commercial litigation, which gives him a great understanding of the challenges his clients face if they end up in court. His awareness of the financial and emotional risks litigation poses to families enables him to face confrontation and conflict head-on and skillfully address challenges that arise during mediation and the collaborative divorce process.

Marcos recognizes that his clients’ situations are not win-lose scenarios, but complex problems that require collaboration to reach mutually beneficial solutions. He is highly skilled at finding equitable and realistic resolutions that accommodate the unique needs of each of his clients. Additionally, his deep understanding of financial matters allows him to analyze and interpret complex financial documents and address complicated issues such as stock options and shareholder-related concerns. This enables him to provide informed and strategic guidance on the equitable distribution of property ensuring that his clients' financial interests are well-represented throughout the process.

Marcos earned his J.D. in 2011 from Pennsylvania State University, Dickinson School of Law, where he served as comments editor for the Environmental Law Review. Prior to law school, Marcos earned his undergraduate degree from Penn State where he studied philosophy and political science. He is Vice President of the Board of Directors of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals (NYACP) and Chair of the Association's Membership Committee. He is also a Member of the International Association of Collaborative Professionals (IACP), the National Association of Divorce Professionals (NADP), and the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA). Marcos works in the firm’s Manhattan office and lives in Forest Hills with his wife and son.

Panelists:

Ivan Alter is a collaborative attorney, mediator and teacher with offices in Westchester County, New York and New York City. Practicing law since 1993, Ivan traded in an early career spent litigating complex commercial matters and high-conflict matrimonial cases in favor of a practice where his clients are empowered to design satisfying resolutions to their conflicts through Collaborative Law and Mediation.  Ivan is an adjunct professor of law at Brooklyn Law School, a director and trainer with the Center for Understanding in Conflict, a director of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals, and a member of the Family and Divorce Mediation Council and the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals.  Ivan is a graduate of Brooklyn Law School, Columbia University, and Brandeis University.

Anthony Markus of Markus & Sheridan, LLP has over twenty-eight years of experience as a family law and estate planning attorney. He has handled hundreds of divorce matters to successful conclusion through various methods including collaborative process, negotiated settlements, and litigation. He has been a member of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals for over 12 years, co-authored the NYACP Protocols of Practice and presently serves as co-chair of the Training and Education Committee. He has advised divorce clients ranging from those involving straight-forward legal and financial matters to the complex, involving multi-million dollar businesses, comprehensives pensions, corporate benefit packages and unqualified plans. He has conducted numerous CLE lectures concerning collaborative practice, spousal and child support, qualified retirement plans, revocable trusts and the probate process for the New York City Bar Association and the National Business Institute. Mr. Markus is a former instructor for the Parent Education and Awareness Program (P.E.A.C.E program) where he taught parenting skills to couples going through divorce and is co-author of Collaborative Practice: Efficient Dispute Resolution for In-House Counsel for the Inside Journal of the New York State Bar Association. He is a founding member of the New York Civil Collaborative Group and participated as panel member of professionals in a 2012 CLE Video Webinar for the International Institute of Conflict Prevention and Resolution on the application of Collaborative Law in employment disputes. He presently sits as Justice for the Town of Mount Kisco.

Meg Sussman is a clinical psychologist who has been working with individuals, couples, and families for over 30 years. During that time she has specialized in helping divorcing couples transition to the next phase of their lives so that all family members can have the best possible outcome.  Dr. Sussman has been an active member of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals from its inception and currently serves as Secretary of the Board.  As a collaborative professional, Dr. Sussman serves as a family specialist where she helps parents and children learn how to communicate more effectively, develop parenting plans and cope with the emotions they experience during this difficult time in their lives. This involves working with attorneys and financial professionals as part of a team.  In addition to her psychotherapy and collaborative practice, Dr. Sussman serves as a parent coordinator to assist parents when there are decisions to be made and to work together in the best interests of their children.