4. Sign a parenting coordinator agreement

Once you've decided which parenting coordinator to hire, they usually draft an agreement that includes details, such as:

• the role of the parenting coordinator
• how long you work together – usually this is from 6 – 24 months
• the date of your court order, family arbitration award, or separation agreement that your parenting coordination agreement relates to
• who pays for the parenting coordinator
• if the process is open or closed and if anything has to stay private
• how a parent or the parenting coordinator can stop the process
• how all of you communicate with each other

Before signing the agreement:

• Read it carefully.
• Make sure that it includes all the important details about the process.
• Ask any questions you have.
• Make sure that you understand it.

You don't have to get independent legal advice (ILA) before signing a parenting coordinator agreement.

But it is a good idea to talk to a lawyer, who can tell you the types of things that a parenting coordinator can do. And many parenting coordinators will only agree to work with you if you have ILA from a lawyer.

If you can't afford to hire a lawyer for your whole case, some lawyers provide “unbundled services” or “limited scope retainer” services. This means you pay them to help you with part of your case.

If you can't afford to hire a lawyer at all, you may be able to find legal help in other places.