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Published on:

3rd Jun 2025

Navigating Divorce with Special Needs Challenges: Dr. Price’s Insights on Justice and Inclusion

In this episode of Doing Divorce Different, host Lesa Koski welcomes Dr. Price—a trailblazing attorney, educator, and autism therapist—who shares her extraordinary journey of combining legal expertise with a deep commitment to justice and special needs advocacy.

With over 25 years of experience as a civil trial attorney and prosecutor, Dr. Price has served as an expert witness and consultant in more than 75 cases involving special needs issues. She brings a unique perspective to the table, highlighting the intersection of law, public service, and personal advocacy.

Now an esteemed professor and Academic Program Director at National University, Dr. Price continues to shape future leaders, drawing on her award-winning teaching skills and unparalleled dedication. She’s also trained in the Judevine method for autism therapy, providing an added layer of insight into the needs of individuals with special needs.

Tune in for an inspiring conversation about breaking barriers, finding purpose, and leading with compassion.

Key Takeaways:

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome

00:18 Peggy's Background and Personal Story

02:36 Challenges of Divorcing with Special Needs Children

07:11 Financial and Legal Considerations

11:22 Parenting Plans and Custody Arrangements

15:26 Support Systems and Resources

31:33 Conclusion and Resources Dr. Price’s legal background intersects with special needs advocacy

DIY Parenting Plan Course


Find More From Lesa Here!

Transcript
Speaker:

Welcome listeners.

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I feel blessed that you're here today

and I'm so thankful, these amazing

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people that I get on my podcast

and we're gonna learn so much.

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I've got.

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Dr.

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Margaret Price with me and Margaret.

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Can I call you Peggy?

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I think I can.

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Please do.

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Yes.

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So, and this is a thing we're

gonna get to know Peggy a lot more

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through our conversation through

this 30 minutes or so, but the

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reason she's, um, really sparked my

curiosity is she's, um, an attorney.

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She's done divorces, I believe, Dr.

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Price.

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Have you been divorced?

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Yes.

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Here's the thing that really stuck

out to, stuck out to me was that you

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specialize in special needs children

and cases, and I might, you're gonna

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make me better at what I do because

when I mediate, I do have those cases

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once in a while and they're tricky.

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And, um, I, you know, I don't always know.

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I have to learn as I go.

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So this podcast is gonna be about.

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Special needs kiddos going through divorce

and it's gonna be a really fun story.

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We're gonna get to know Peggy.

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So Peggy, welcome.

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Um, you've got a lot of education,

you're an attorney, but not only are

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you an attorney, you're a professor, you

also are a trained, trained therapist.

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Autism.

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Autism, and I'm assuming

you were passionate about

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that because of your child.

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Is that true?

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Speaker 2: Yes.

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I have now a young adult child with autism

who was diagnosed back in the:

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in what they call the dark ages of autism.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: We've come, that's when

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Speaker: my oldest kiddos were

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Speaker 2: born.

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So I get that era.

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Yes.

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And I got divorced when my

child was six years old.

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Oof.

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And still nonverbal.

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And that was, you would think

it was a tough divorce because

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the father is also an A lawyer.

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Oh, I didn't know that.

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No, but what I explain to

people is generals hate war.

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Yeah, because they've lived it.

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They've seen it.

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Same thing with a lot of lawyers.

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We know how ugly a divorce can

get, so ours was totally civilized.

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Yay.

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Speaker: I love your story

because you know I'm doing divorce

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different, that's what I talk about.

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That's all I wanna talk about.

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So listeners, if this is the

only thing you get out of

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today, you can do this amicably.

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If you both put your minds to it.

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Speaker 2: It often helps to

have some it, because usually a

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divorce is not with lawyers on

both sides as the parties, right.

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So it usually helps to

have a third person who.

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Doesn't want to pour

gasoline on the flames Yep.

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To guide the parties through

to have a civilized divorce,

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especially if they have children.

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Mm-hmm.

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Whether those children have special

needs or not, because the, the

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parents need to work together for

the rest of their lives mm-hmm.

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On raising the child and, you

know, you don't stop being a

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parent when your child turns 18.

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Right, and I, I saw far too many

tragic cases when I was practicing law.

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I'm full-time academia now, um, in

which I would warn my client and

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in, in the hearing of the other

other party, that one day their

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child would graduate high school.

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Graduate college, get married,

have kids, did they want to ruin

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all of those moments because of a

temporary fight during the divorce?

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Right?

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Because those fights, those

battles destroy relationships

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and it's not fair to the kids.

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Nope.

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So we, so we had an

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Speaker: amicable divorce.

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Good for you.

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And so I, I'm hoping that we can help

people with that, but I'm hoping that

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as we go on our journey here and learn a

little bit more about this, we can also

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help someone who isn't as fortunate and

maybe doesn't have, because you know,

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it has to be voluntary on both sides.

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And so if you're in this with someone

who's not very voluntary, then let's.

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Get to how we can, because that, I imagine

how hard that would've been, Peggy.

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Oh yeah.

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If you, you know, I mean, I

can't, I, I can't even imagine.

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Speaker 2: Well, what I realized

immediately after the divorce,

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'cause it only took a couple

of months, it was non-tested.

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But I, I realized immediately

afterward that if I weren't already

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a lawyer handling divorces and if I

weren't already an autism therapist

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for several years at that point.

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I would not have had a clue

about the issues that needed

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to be handled in the divorce.

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A lot of people silo their lives.

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Here's their divorce and it's

separate from everything else.

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Here's their child.

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Their child is separate from the rest

of their lives, and that's not life.

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Right?

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It's holistic and so.

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There are issues that must be at

least looked at during a divorce

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for the best interest of the child.

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And that's supposed to be the

standard in American family courts,

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the best interests of the child.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: And if the unique needs

of a child with special needs

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are not addressed and addressed

appropriately during the divorce,

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the child's needs will not be met.

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The child and the caregiver

parent could live in poverty

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for the rest of their lives.

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We don't want that.

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No.

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That's not what our society wants.

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Speaker: So let's, let's dig into that.

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Let little bit

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Speaker 2: Sure.

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Speaker: Um.

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So say we've got some listeners and they,

they don't even know where to begin.

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You know, they, they're like, okay,

we're, we're getting divorced.

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Either they've got someone who's

gonna work with them or they don't,

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and they have this special needs

kiddo and you're already wiped

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out from the divorce probably.

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Right?

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And then you've gotta think

about this additional piece.

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And my guess is that there are things

that you're gonna have to think about

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even more than you do when you're just.

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Doing a parenting plan for your

kids who don't have special needs.

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Absolutely.

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Absolutely.

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How does someone, how does someone figure

those things out and what are they?

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Speaker 2: Well, one of them is

financial and a lot of divorces

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have money problems at their root.

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If there wasn't enough money to go

around for one household, now how on,

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how on earth is it going to work for two?

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And if you have a child with

special needs, it's often more

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expensive because if and special

needs, I don't limit that phrase.

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Only to autism.

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I mean, it could be my question too.

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Yes.

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It could be a child with cancer.

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It could be a child with diabetes who

has to be on a special nutritional

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regimen and have to have blood work

their, their blood levels checked

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multiple times through the day.

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They might have to have

insulin injections.

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There are medical visits, copays,

deductibles, all those things that.

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The additional financial challenges

of raising a child with whatever

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type of special need should

be addressed in the divorce.

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The standard child support

charts don't cover this.

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There is often in, in many states,

aligned for extraordinary expenses.

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But those often get used for trust

fund babies going to private school.

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Speaker: You know, it's so funny, Peggy,

that you're talking about as you're

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talking about this, something popped into

my head and I thought this is interesting.

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So when I was young, I had, um,

a cousin who is exactly my age.

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Good, good friend.

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He's, um.

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He was in a horrible car accident

and had, uh, had a brain injury.

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Uh, he's, you know, functioning okay.

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They state they didn't divorce.

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But what if you don't?

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What if something like that happens?

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Mm-hmm.

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Then, I mean, that's not even something

I ever talk about with clients.

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I mean, that's, you know, they've got so

much on their minds, and you know what?

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That's nothing I've ever even thought

of until just now sitting here with you.

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Speaker 2: And that is another

category of special needs.

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Yeah.

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Where a person has a, a traumatic

accident and long-term impacts from it.

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They might not be able to

live independently ever.

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Right.

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Maybe they can work part-time, but.

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A person can't survive on a part-time

job, or maybe they need a life coach to

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handle their money or their, you know,

living expenses, how to budget, how

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to pay bills, those kinds of things.

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How to not be ripped off by people

who would see them as a target.

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Speaker: So how, how does a couple or a

person going through a divorce wrap their

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hat around what these future expenses

are and how do they, how do you draft

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that so that it goes into the future?

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Speaker 2: Uh, it is hard to think of

everything that you need to include.

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Mm-hmm.

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Luckily, I did write a law

book for lawyers and judges,

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and I wrote a parent guide.

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As another book, and this one

obviously is for parents to educate

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them on if you have, first of all,

here's what a special needs child is.

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A lot of people don't think of their

children as having special needs.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: And I would ask, well,

do they have an IEP at school?

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An individualized educational plan?

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Yes.

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Okay.

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They don't hand those

out like candy, right?

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There's a reason why your child

needs additional accommodations

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in order to succeed in school.

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We need to delve into that

and think about how that might

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impact their life down the road.

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Will they be able to go to college?

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Will they be able to have a career?

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Will they be able to make enough

money to support themselves?

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So first for parents to realize, oh, I

have my, I, I have a child with needs

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that need to be addressed in the divorce.

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Yep.

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And then so if they've, if they realize

their child's in that category mm-hmm.

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Then it goes into how it can impact the

child's life currently and down the road,

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how it can impact their siblings lives.

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Because being the sibling of someone with

special needs is interesting as well.

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Yes.

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And a lot of times those children get kind

of shuffled off to the side because there

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aren't enough hours in the day to spend

adequate time with all of the children.

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If one or more have special needs and

one or more do not, which is why the

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parenting plans also need to have.

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Uh, great detail on, on, uh,

visitation and custody schedule.

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You can't just, it, it's bad enough

that a lot of these cases just get

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the cookie cutter preprint printed,

you know, four or six page form and

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one parent gets holiday schedule a,

one parent gets holiday schedule B.

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It's bad enough when that happens, when

there's a child with special needs.

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Putting them in that cookie cutter.

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But when you also have a child or

children who do not have special

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needs, you're putting both groups in

the same schedule and that's wrong.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: And there are quick

fixes to a lot of these things.

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I mean, we could sit here for

days talking about some of this.

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Can you give me, can

you give me one example?

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Sure.

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Let's say that you have a detailed

parenting plan that minimizes transitions,

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because those are usually mm-hmm.

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A, a challenge for a child with special

needs, and you work really hard on making

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the schedule, the parenting schedule.

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Uh, modified to meet the,

the child with special needs,

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what their unique issues are.

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Then you add for each parent separately.

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Let's say you have one child with cerebral

palsy and another child who is typical

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Speaker: mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: The, the parenting plan

can be crafted around the child with

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cerebral palsy, and then you can

add for each parent with the typical

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child, they get individual one-on-one

time scheduled once or twice a month

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for a three or four hour block.

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If you think about the moments

that stand out from your childhood.

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They weren't a solid week at a time.

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They were the moments.

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And when a parent gets the freedom to

spend a few hours once or twice a month

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with the typical child and not being

distracted by meeting the needs of the

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child with special needs, that's when

they build memories that last a lifetime.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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That's great information.

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And um, and as I'm sitting here,

my head is spinning because, so

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I have, I have a great parenting

plan course for typical kids.

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Mm-hmm.

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So, and I, I always, you know,

I, I tell people if, if you can

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do anything together, do that

together and then, you know.

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Fire away with attorneys and, but okay.

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So I feel like, okay,

what do I add something?

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If they get this guide from you,

will they be able to, who do they

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go to for this parenting plan?

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That's what I'm wondering.

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Speaker 2: Well, the parent guide

that I wrote educates parents on

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how to best work with their lawyers.

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Okay.

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To adv to advocate for their children.

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And it explains, so they would go

through their lawyer or if they

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were using a mediator, mediator,

that's what they would go through.

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And it, it also explains to the parents

that, uh, like the types of evidence

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that will be most compelling to the

court, often one parent is in denial.

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Oh, there's nothing wrong with my kid.

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Yes.

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And then the other parent is

knocking themselves out and

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making it their life mission to do

everything possible for the child.

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So the parent who's in denial says

that the other parent is exaggerating.

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Doing this for attention, making

a mountain out of a molehill.

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I'm sure you've heard all of

these things dozens of times in

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cases that you've handled well.

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Each side could spend thousands

of dollars hiring experts to

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say what they want them to say.

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Right.

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And the judge is going to, in at

least on an intellectual level,

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if not verbally dismiss the weight

of both experts as a he said, she

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said, which is so common in divorce.

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Mm-hmm.

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So what you need is an unbiased

third party with no skin in the game.

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That's the school district.

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The school district must provide

under a DA accommodations and, uh,

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for under education law for people

with special needs, they must provide

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appropriate accommodations so that

they can succeed in public school.

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K through 12.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: In some states, they also

provide it for non-public school.

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Okay?

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And in order to formulate the IEP

first, they do a battery of tests

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on the child, and then they write up

these long reports with diagnoses, with

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conclusions, and with a plan, an IEP.

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Individualized educational plan.

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Now, school districts are

always strapped for money.

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They are not going to say, oh, this child

needs 20 hours of pullout therapy a week.

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Because of

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what people would consider

extraordinarily minor issues.

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They will try to satisfy

the letter of the law.

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With the minimum amount of therapy

they can, they're going to be very

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conservative because they have a lot of

needs for every dollar that they receive.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: So they're trying to stretch

their dollars and they're IEP and their

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evaluations and their testing reports.

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The judge will look at those and you

know, judges are in the real world.

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They know about the financial

constraints of school districts.

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They know it's not

going to be exaggerated.

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And so when I would have

an IEP brought into court,

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the judge would pour over it.

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To find out exactly what is the real

situation for this child because

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the parents often do disagree.

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Speaker: Okay.

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So that's a really, yeah.

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Yeah.

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Very, very good.

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Unbiased third party, if

that's available to you.

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I'm gonna guess that there are times

when that, that isn't available to

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people and then, and then you, it

probably gets a little bit trickier.

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Um, absolutely.

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I

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Speaker 2: mean, you, we, you don't pick

when your marriage is going to fall apart.

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Mm-hmm.

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And if you have a child who is at

an age where they're just starting.

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To exhibit behaviors or symptoms that make

a parent question and they haven't had a

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full evaluation yet or a formal diagnosis.

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Mm-hmm.

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That's tricky.

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So what, what I recommend to parents

at that time is make it part of

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the record that this is a pending

and emerging issue, and then when.

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There is an evaluation and

a formal diagnosis, there's

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always the motion to modify.

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Speaker: Okay.

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Yep.

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Which is, I'm assuming what people

do if they run into an issue later

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on in life with a child who's in a

horrible accident or whatever it is.

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Right?

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Speaker 2: Right.

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Or a child condition

becomes much more severe.

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Right.

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Or, you know, prayers

going or, or better, yes.

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Speaker: Yep.

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Yep.

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Okay, so now I wanna talk a little bit

about, um, child support's gotta be

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different because child support is gonna

cover those kiddos until they're like 18.

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What happens with these kids and,

and how do you, how do you set that

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up if you're not working together?

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Speaker 2: That's tough.

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And even if you are and you

have a settlement agreement.

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That states that the, uh, because of the

child's special needs, and it enumerates

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exactly what the formal di formal

diagnosis is that, uh, this child might

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not, that the standard age of emancipation

might not be appropriate with this

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child, but you can't tell the future.

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So you don't know, right.

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Um, raising the issue, it won't stop.

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A, a very common situation of down

the road, the other parent becomes

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involved with, another person gets

married again and says, oh, hey,

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now I have a new family to support.

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So this child support needs to stop.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: You know, parenting plans

can't stop people from being human.

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Right.

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But not only is does the child

support need to be looked at on.

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Altering the date of emancipation

and maybe trying to, to give

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even the, the problem is you're

trying to nail jello to the wall.

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You and gel.

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Yeah.

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Jello to the wall.

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That might be 10 years down the road.

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Mm-hmm.

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The child say is eight.

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Right.

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Um, so what happens is you're

trying to predict the future.

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And that's hard.

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So maybe setting some kind of

benchmarks on whether the child

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is, when the child is actually

financially supporting themselves,

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child support will stop.

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Now, of course, the flip side, the

argument against that is well then

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the parent who's, who's the primary

caregiver parent in reality, if not.

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Formally called that in,

in, in the court papers.

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Um, we'll have the incentive to keep

the money flowing in to, to coddle

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the child and to, um, not right.

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Push them to be all that they can be.

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And that's a valid argument.

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Speaker: Hopefully most parents

are wanting their children

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to be all that they can be.

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Right?

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Exactly.

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Exactly.

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Speaker 2: But parenting plans need to

cover not only the child support, but.

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Special needs children have on

the average three times as many

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sick days as typical children.

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Speaker: Mm-hmm.

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Speaker 2: Now, in the real world,

if the parenting plan does not

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say, divide the responsibility for

those sick day sick days fairly.

395

:

What happens is often is that the

parent who makes more money says, well,

396

:

I can't leave my job to go, you know,

stay home from school with a sick kid.

397

:

Um, the other parent ends up now realize

this parent's already trying to live

398

:

on less money than the other parent.

399

:

Mm-hmm.

400

:

Um.

401

:

That parent then has the responsibility

for all those sick days, which means that

402

:

they tend to frequently lose their jobs.

403

:

They get fired because of too

many absences, and then they're

404

:

looking for a new job frequently,

and you go in at entry level.

405

:

Mm-hmm.

406

:

And there are the issues of health

insurance for the parent as well

407

:

as the child, because you're often

in a probationary period and.

408

:

On saving for, uh, retirement.

409

:

You might not be eligible for the

co company 401k plan until you've

410

:

been there for a year or six months.

411

:

Speaker: Well, yeah, and Peggy, that is

what is screaming in my head right now.

412

:

What happens to that parent who has maybe

during the marriage been the primary care?

413

:

Maybe they're not even working.

414

:

Maybe they're the primary

caregiver for this child.

415

:

What happens when you get divorced?

416

:

I can't believe that I haven't had more

of these cases, interestingly enough.

417

:

Speaker 2: Yeah, because a lot of

people view the the special needs of

418

:

the child separate from the divorce.

419

:

This was between the parents, the

divorce was, and then the special needs.

420

:

Well, those are something

that happened separately.

421

:

Speaker: Mm-hmm.

422

:

Speaker 2: And, um, yes, it is

ex an extremely important issue

423

:

because it can be so disruptive

of a parent's career when they are

424

:

raising a child with special needs.

425

:

Speaker: Well, and, and Peggy, I'm just

gonna say this on my own behalf, I feel

426

:

like I was, my husband has a big job

and I was, and I wouldn't change it.

427

:

I was primary for our three kiddos.

428

:

I don't have the career I would've had if

I would have been completely focused on

429

:

my career more than taking care of things.

430

:

Mm-hmm.

431

:

So I mean, I suppose, is that

an argument for maintenance?

432

:

I mean, how does that,

how, how do you get that?

433

:

Or getting more assets or, so that's

just my situation in a typical, but

434

:

what happens when you are, you've agreed

that mom is going to take care of child.

435

:

And it's a special needs

child and it's a big job.

436

:

And then you, and you've been married

maybe 15 years and maybe child's 10.

437

:

What happens to Tamma

438

:

Speaker 2: or whoever's the one

approach and it, it really is.

439

:

A challenge to try to figure out

the dollars and cents of this for

440

:

down the road as well as current.

441

:

One thing that I have seen parents do

is in the Quadro, the qualified domestic

442

:

relations order to, to distribute

the retirement accounts counts.

443

:

I have seen where some

parents have said, listen.

444

:

I know I've been away from

the home a lot working.

445

:

I'm making lots of money, and you

are being the primary caregiver.

446

:

And by the way, this has enough

nothing to do with gender.

447

:

The, the primary caregiver might be

the, the mom or the dad, or there

448

:

might be two moms or two dads.

449

:

Mm-hmm.

450

:

So nothing to do with gender.

451

:

But the parent who has been the high

earner throughout the marriage, I have

452

:

seen where sometimes they've said, it's

really important to me that you have

453

:

the freedom to keep putting the time

in to take care of our child, and they

454

:

will sign by agreement, sign a quadro

form that allocates more than 50%.

455

:

Oh, the retirement account.

456

:

So

457

:

Speaker: that makes sense to me.

458

:

And I can see, um, two people

who care for their child.

459

:

But then I think of how messy it

gets if you have to fight about it.

460

:

If this becomes a fight mm-hmm.

461

:

In court,

462

:

I mean that's,

463

:

Speaker 2: that, that'd be tough.

464

:

Oh, absolutely.

465

:

Because it's what I advocate.

466

:

When I speak at CLEs at law conferences,

or when I speak in podcasts or in my

467

:

books, I'm advocating for deviation,

yes, from the standard procedure.

468

:

The standard way of distributing the, the

money, the assets, the time, all of that.

469

:

And you know, as well as I do, judges

don't like to be appealed and they

470

:

don't like to be reversed on appeal.

471

:

Mm-hmm.

472

:

And the legal system changes very slowly.

473

:

I have seen improvement,

but it's, it's usually.

474

:

A judge will deviate from cookie

cutter when they've lived it, when

475

:

they have a child with special needs.

476

:

One of the best judges I ever had, cases

in front of cases that involved special

477

:

needs in family law disputes, had a

young adult son with a seizure disorder.

478

:

He got it.

479

:

Yeah.

480

:

Speaker: And what we need is we need

judges to be able to, because we can't

481

:

experience everything in life, right.

482

:

So we need them to be open and empathetic

and to really, to really look at this.

483

:

And we need strong advocates mm-hmm.

484

:

Who are well versed to know where to turn,

um, when this kind of a case, you know.

485

:

It comes to them, so, and, and so when

you practiced law, did you practice

486

:

in this area, Peggy or geographic or

487

:

Speaker 2: subject?

488

:

Subject?

489

:

This area?

490

:

Yes.

491

:

I had, I primarily did family law.

492

:

Yep.

493

:

And so did you have a lot of

these cases that you fought for?

494

:

Well, the first special needs

divorce case I handled was my own.

495

:

Right.

496

:

And then after that, and I wrote

the law book for the American and

497

:

Bar Association, um, word got around

locally where I was in the Midwest.

498

:

Mm-hmm.

499

:

And um, then it was like

the floodgates opening.

500

:

So many people are in this situation

and they're just astonished.

501

:

That it can be addressed in the divorce.

502

:

Speaker: Yeah.

503

:

And and

504

:

Speaker 2: should be, should be, yes.

505

:

Yes, yes,

506

:

Speaker: yes.

507

:

So, yeah.

508

:

So let's, let's maybe use this

podcast to alert people that you

509

:

know, lawyers and the general public.

510

:

That this is something

that is really important.

511

:

I, I'm telling, so we're going

over time, so I'm gonna need to

512

:

put a pin in this, but I feel like

I kind of wanna have you back.

513

:

I feel like I'm so grateful for

you, Peggy, because Thank you.

514

:

You're making me a better mediator

and my brain is just moving right now.

515

:

Thinking about that parenting plan

course that I had, thinking about

516

:

wanting to address this more.

517

:

Um.

518

:

With clients, maybe with the public.

519

:

So I'd love to have you back.

520

:

I, I'm gonna read that, I'm gonna

read your book and I'd like, I'm

521

:

gonna have it in the show notes,

so I'll have a link and if, and how

522

:

can people find it if they're not?

523

:

Um, in my show notes at the moment,

524

:

Speaker 2: the Parenting the Parent Guide.

525

:

Yeah.

526

:

Which is, uh, divorce and

the special needs Child.

527

:

A guide for parents.

528

:

Uh, Jessica Kingsley,

publishers out of London.

529

:

That's on Amazon.

530

:

Okay.

531

:

And the law books, 'cause there was

a first edition and then a second

532

:

edition in which I added, uh, a section

on special needs adults and divorce.

533

:

And I could spend another

hour talking about that one.

534

:

Yeah.

535

:

And crisis planning because of what

we learned going through COVID.

536

:

Yep.

537

:

Um, so you will want, you would

want to get the, the second

538

:

edition that's also on Amazon.

539

:

Okay.

540

:

And that's the American Bar

Association is the publisher.

541

:

All right.

542

:

Awesome.

543

:

Speaker: Peggy, thank you so much for

being here and sharing your story.

544

:

I really, really appreciate it.

545

:

Speaker 2: Thank you for giving me the

opportunity to, uh, raise the issue and

546

:

raise awareness with your listeners.

547

:

I appreciate it.

548

:

Speaker: Wonderful.

549

:

Take good care.

550

:

Speaker 2: Thanks, you too.

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A Podcast Guide to Doing Divorce Differently

About the Podcast

Doing Divorce Different A Podcast Guide to Doing Divorce Differently
Divorce, co-parenting, menopause, marriage, and starting over after 40—Doing Divorce Different is your guide to a healthy, faith filled life transition.

Hosted by Family Law Attorney and Mediator Lesa Koski, Doing Divorce Different is a candid, empowering podcast designed to take the fear out of divorce and guide you toward peace—whether you’re navigating a split, working to stay married, or rebuilding a better life after a major transition. Each week, Lesa brings heart-centered legal insight, emotional support, and holistic wisdom to help you heal, grow, and thrive.

We cover everything from amicable divorce and co-parenting strategies to parenting plans that actually work and support kids in thriving through change. You’ll learn how to prepare for marriage with prenups, revisit your relationship with post-nuptial agreements, and understand what it really takes to stay married or rekindle love after a rough season. If you're in the midst of a grey divorce, wondering how to not get divorced, or questioning whether love can be found again, this show is for you.

Lesa also explores the emotional and physical changes that often accompany midlife and major life shifts. From navigating the impact of menopause on your health, marriage, and mood, to dealing with the loneliness that can come after divorce or empty nesting, you’ll find honest conversations that don’t shy away from real-life challenges. And for those of you in your 40s, 50s, or beyond, you’ll discover what it means to truly build a better life after 40.

Health and wellness are deeply integrated into this journey. Lesa shares insights on the benefits of rest, joy, nutrition, fasting, protein, and bone health, along with the power of movement, community, and exercise to support mental clarity and physical strength. You’ll learn how to take care of yourself with intention—because healing isn’t just emotional, it’s also biological.

Mindset work and self-coaching are recurring tools offered in episodes to help you reframe your story and shift from fear to freedom. And through it all, the show honors the role of faith, spiritual surrender, and letting God lead you through every season. Whether you're leaning into your relationship with God for the first time or deepening a lifelong practice, you’ll hear how surrender can bring peace even in the hardest moments.

You’ll hear real stories from people who have done divorce differently, saved their marriages, or found new love and purpose on the other side. Lesa also brings in conversations about marriages that have stood the test of time, co-parenting through complex seasons, and the realities of parenting after separation while maintaining stability for your kids.

This is not just a podcast about divorce. Doing Divorce Different is about taking back your life, rewriting your future, and trusting that you’re not starting over, you’re starting better. If you’re craving practical advice, soul-level encouragement, and real conversations about creating a healthy, joyful, purpose-driven life, you’ve found your community.

Subscribe now and join Lesa Koski for weekly episodes that will help you grow stronger in your relationships, your health, and your faith, no matter where you’re starting from.

About the Host:
I’ve spent over 25 years helping families navigate amicable divorce as a lawyer and mediator, always focused on protecting what matters most—your kids and your peace of mind. But my mission has expanded. Today, I support women over 40 not just through endings, but in building stronger relationships—and sometimes even saving their marriages. I’m a breast cancer survivor, a cowgirl at heart, a wellness advocate, and a follower of Jesus. My life and faith fuel my passion for helping women thrive.

About your host

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Lesa Koski