What is collaboration?
It’s a dispute resolution process known as “collaborative family law”, which takes place out of court to resolve separation, divorce, and property matters when a close relationship breaks down or is ending.
- Encourages problem-solving rather than blame and grievance
- Facilitates exchange and understanding of information
- Focuses on interests, not positions, to gain understanding
- Aims for “win-win” solutions to end disagreement or dispute
- Builds agreements based on the parties’ interests (concerns, hopes, expectations, assumptions, priorities, beliefs, fears, and values)
- Encourages a range of settlement options and outcomes
Overall, it empowers parties to make their own decisions with the help of specially trained collaborative law professionals to help them resolve their matters.
Benefits of collaborative law
- Private and confidential
- Meetings are managed to encourage peaceful and constructive dialog
- Encourages respectful non-blaming communication
- Focuses on your and your children’s needs
- Creates customized solutions instead of a “one size fits all” approach
- Direct control over the pace and timing of the process and outcome
- Minimizes the financial and emotional costs of separation and divorce, as well as the impact on children and family
- Provides opportunity for satisfying outcomes and comprehensive agreements
- Settlements arrived at peaceably take into account the parties’ interests, in addition to their legal rights and entitlements
- Procedurally easier, quicker, and less expensive than litigation and court processes
- Amicable process for pre-nuptial, post-nuptial and cohabitation agreements
How does collaborative law work?
Collaboration empowers parties to make their own decisions with the help of specially trained professionals.
- Parties are encouraged to communicate their thoughts and ideas rather than having their lawyers speak for them (Collaborative team members may communicate between meetings to coordinate their work in the process and to keep matters moving towards settlement)
- Lawyers who practice collaborative family law and other registered collaborative family law professionals (divorce coaches, financial and/or family specialists) are specially trained to resolve conflict in non-adversarial ways
- Collaborative lawyers and other collaborative professionals must be registered members in good standing in their respective associations
- Parties sign a Participation Agreement that outlines the process and a commitment to negotiate in good faith, disclose required financial information relevant to the matters, and to not start or continue a Court proceeding while participating in this process
- The parties each have their own lawyer for their own independent legal advice and opinion
- Lawyers facilitate the process and negotiation between the parties and each lawyer supports their own client in the negotiation
- If parties choose a team-centered approach, other registered collaborative professionals may be included in these group meetings and may also facilitate the process
- Group meetings are scheduled at times that work for the parties and collaborative professionals
- The collaborative professionals work together to help the parties resolve their matters in the most efficient and effective way
- Agreements reached in the collaborative process are legally binding and drafted by the lawyers
- In the less likely event that the parties are unable to, or decide not to, settle all issues in this process, they would need to retain new lawyers if they to go to Court
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