Collaborative Law - A Less Stressful Divorce

Collaborative law is a way of ending a marriage that emphasises discussion and aims to reach a settlement of court with a minimum of confrontation

. The process can work as laid out below:

1. You will meet with a collaborative lawyer - lawyers must be specifically trained in collaborative law - in order to state your intention to embark on the process. Your partner also has to find and hire a collaborative lawyer.

2. Respective lawyers can then arrange a first meeting, whilst you will hold separate discussions with your lawyer to prepare for this before meeting with your partner and their lawyer. These are known as "four way" meetings.

3. In the first meeting you will set an agenda for future discussions, as well as laying out the points that are important to both you and your partner. Items to be discussed at forthcoming meetings can be raised as minutes will be taken at each meeting.

4. Also included in the initial meeting is an agreement that both parties sign, which promises that they won't take the case to court and lays out the level of confidentiality that both parties will keep to. A full financial disclosure is required as a condition of undertaking collaborative law, and discussions are held "without prejudice", meaning that they cannot later be used in any court proceedings.

5. Throughout the process, external people such as social workers or accountants can be introduced to help form the agreement to suit all parties' interests.

6. The level of correspondence between lawyers is kept to a minimum during the collaborative process ' keeping communication channels open through dialogue so that the final settlement is a balanced agreement is encouraged.

7. If children are involved in the divorce, their interests are put at the centre of any settlement reached through the collaborative process. Keeping a workable relationship post marriage is seen as important in the process, particularly in emphasising parenting responsibilities.

8. There are situations when collaborative law is not appropriate, such as if one partner has an injunction against them or if a legal claim has to go to court.

9. Once an agreement has been finalised, and signed by all parties, lawyers for yourself and your partner can file the appropriate paperwork with a court, in order to gain final approval to end the marriage. In bringing about this swift ending, collaborative law can offer the opportunity for you to move onto the next phase of your life.

by: Tim Bishop

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