Family Law Section publishes conduct handbook.

Aiming to improve the civility and professionalism of family law practice, the Bar's Family Law Section has published "Bounds of Advocacy: Goals for Family Lawyers."

The 38-page booklet has been distributed to all section members as well as all Florida judges. It's also available for free to any Bar member who requests a copy.

"It goes through all of the different things that are peculiar to family law." said section Chair Evan Marks. "It's not a code of ethics so much as it is an aspirational code for family law and to take the Rambo tactics out of family law and replace it ... with making sure people leave a case better than when they came in."

"We're really trying to change the way lawyers represent clients in family law cases," said Stephen Sessums, who chaired the section's Bounds of Advocacy committee, which wrote the handbook. "We're trying to encourage them to follow a model of problem-solving rather than pure litigation."

All-out litigation often leaves even more damaged feelings among people who frequently must still have a relationship, such as divorcing parents who will still have to cooperate on visitation rights and raising their children.

"We have an obligation to help families reconstruct their lives and not destruct their lives," Sessums said.

The handbook chapters are Professional Cooperation and the Administration of Justice, Competence and Advice, Communication and Decision-making Responsibility, Conflict of Interest, Fees, Pre-litigation Advice, and The Children. Each chapter has several subsections addressing a broad range of issues, from fees to dealing with opposing parties to guidelines on bringing children to court.

"Most attorneys are able to distinguish between unethical or illegal conduct and ethical and proper practice. These goals, therefore, are directed primarily to those areas in between, in which even experienced, knowledgeable family lawyers might have concerns, and are an effort to provide clear, specific guidelines in areas most important to family lawyers," the handbook says in its introductory pages.

"The goals reaffirm the attorney's obligation to competently represent individual clients. They also promote a problem-solving approach that also considers the client's children and family as well. In addition, they encourage efforts to reduce cost, delay, and emotional trauma and urge interaction between parties and attorneys on a more reasoned, cooperative level."

The...