Before you buy anything

Five ways to understand your parenting plan, and what each one costs you in money and time

When I was in the thick of it, every kind of help cost money I didn't have or hours I didn't have, and usually both. Nobody laid the options next to each other, so here they are, measured the same way.

I had people for the emotional part. What I couldn't find was a tool that gave me clear answers and a list of what to strike or fix, so I built one.
CBCarrie Bailey, founder. Mom, not a lawyer.
The job we're comparingReading your parenting plan and finding out what it actually says, what it leaves out, and which lines two people could read differently.

Read it with your lawyer

An hourly appointment, or a flat fee to review the agreement.

Money
$375 to $2,000
About $375 an hour for Florida family law and $349 across all U.S. lawyers1. Flat-fee agreement reviews run about $700 to $2,0002.
Your time
1 to 3 hoursEST
Plus the wait for an appointment.
ProsThe only option here that can tell you what your plan means for your case.
ConsThe clock is running while you both read, and every follow-up question is another billed hour.

Work through it with a coach

A divorce or co-parenting coach, usually over a few sessions.

Money
$100 to $1,200
Coaches charge about $50 to $300 an hour3, over 2 to 4 sessionsEST.
Your time
2 to 6 hoursEST
Spread over a few weeks.
ProsSomeone in your corner who has seen a lot of plans and can help you stay steady.
ConsA coach can't give legal advice, and they can only respond to what you bring to the session.

Sort it out in mediation

A neutral mediator with both parents in the room.

Money
$356 to $1,161
National range for divorce mediation, about $643 on average4.
Your time
About 12 hours
Often six two-hour sessions4, with both parents there.
ProsBoth parents work out the unclear parts together, which can head off the next disagreement.
ConsThe mediator is neutral, so nobody is reading the plan for you, and you need the other parent at the table.

Do it on your own

Your plan, the free court form and its instructions, and a lot of searching.

Money
$0
Court-approved parenting plan forms and instructions are public5.
Your time
5 to 15 hoursEST
Usually at night, usually more than once.
ProsIt's free, and you'll know your plan better than anyone.
ConsNobody reads it with you, so you can't tell what you missed until it comes up.
Confused to clear

Decode it with ALIGN

A tool and a method that reads your plan with you, clause by clause, in your own AI account. Built to take you from confused to clear in under two hours.

Money
$149, once
Plus an AI subscription, about $20 a month if you don't already have one6.
Your time
Under 2 hoursEST
You bring the plan. The tool does the reading.
ProsClear answers, not a summary. The same 15 checks run on every plan and give you your plan decoded, every unclear line and silent gap, a list of what to strike or fix, and hand-offs for your lawyer or mediator. Use it before a mediation or a meeting with your lawyer, or after, to check the draft. Your files stay with you, and redaction is built in.
ConsIt isn't a lawyer and can't tell you what your plan means for your case. There's no person on the other end, and you'll need that AI subscription.

The way I'd use these together

A good coach, a good mediator and a good lawyer are all worth having, and ALIGN fits before or after any of them.

Before: you walk into the coaching call, the mediation or the lawyer's office already knowing which lines are unclear and what's missing, so the hours you pay for go to the questions only they can answer.

After: it's a second read of what came out of mediation or what your lawyer drafted, so you can see what it says and what it leaves out before you sign something you'll live with for years.

Decode my plan · $149 Start the free 7-Day Challenge

Instant download · works in any state · runs in your own AI account

Where these numbers come from
  1. Florida family law average hourly rate, $375, and the U.S. average across all lawyers, $349 (2025 data). Clio Legal Trends, lawyer rates by state.
  2. Flat fees for limited, defined work such as reviewing a settlement agreement, about $700 to $2,000. AI Lawyer, How much does a family lawyer cost, citing LeanLaw.
  3. Divorce coaches, about $50 to $300 an hour depending on location and experience. ABA Journal, The case for a divorce coach (April 2024).
  4. Divorce mediation, about $643 on average, range $356 to $1,161, and a mediator's estimate of six two-hour sessions. Thumbtack, Cost of mediation.
  5. Example: Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.995(a), Parenting Plan, with instructions. 15th Judicial Circuit. Other states publish their own.
  6. Claude Pro, $20 a month billed monthly. claude.com/pricing. Other AI subscriptions are priced similarly.

EST marks an estimate of time or number of sessions, based on my own experience and not on a published source. Prices vary by state and provider and were checked in October 2026. None of this is a quote for your situation or legal advice. Signals & Structure tools are educational and organizational, and they don't replace a lawyer.