A Houston, Texas, man who once served as a prominent hand doctor was cited for violating a protective order that his estranged wife had taken out during the course of their acrimonious divorce.

The former doctor had only recently been acquitted of assault. Earlier in the year, the man had stood trial after he was charged when his wife told police that he twisted her arm during an altercation at their home. A jury found the doctor not guilty.

The alleged violation of the protective order stemmed from a property purchase. The estranged wife says that the former doctor purchased a home adjacent to her residence. She says he did this so that he could spy on her and harass her. She further claims that the ex-doctor hired people to follow her.

The citation led to the former hand doctor to receive a six-day jail sentence, which was suspended. The divorce case was scheduled to continue later in the week.

While many divorce cases are resolved relatively peacefully, many readers in Houston and across Texas likely have taken note of this case because of its high profile and sensationalism. However, not all cases are destined to be played out in the view of television cameras and newspaper reporters.

In increasing numbers of cases, parties involved in a divorce choose to settle their differences via mediation or by collaborative law, where the focus is on negotiation and each spouse and his or her attorney is considered to be part of a settlement team. This often has the effect of keeping costs down as well, because money is spent working toward a negotiation and settlement rather than potentially costly court actions.

Source: KHOU.com, "Former Houston hand doctor accused of violating protective order," Nov. 15, 2011