Jan 18 2008
Services
What is Collaborative Family Law?
In collaborative family law, spouses or partners, along with their attorneys, agree in advance to resolve their divorces amicably without filing lawsuits or threatening to sue. The goal of the parties and their counsel is to reach a fair settlement that works for all concerned and allows the parties to get on with their lives.
In a typical collaborative law case:
- The parties and their attorneys sign a contract agreeing in advance to the process and goals;
- Negotiations and discovery of relevant information occurs in 4-way (spouses and attorneys) sessions in a cooperative, team-like environment;
- If experts such as a mediator, financial planner, and child specialist are needed to value community assets, decide how to allocate investments, or work with children, the parties retain one professional—not pay for competing experts with community assets;
- A mediator can be included to move the process along efficiently in the capacity of a case manager, to resolve an impasse, or to provide the environment for lawyer advocacy if necessary;
- The end result is a settlement that is fundamentally fair to both parties serves their basic interests, and allows them to move on with their lives.
This process is effective and life-giving in resolving other kinds of disputes as well but has been pioneered in collaborative divorces and parenting plans where we know it works.
Maybe a friend or relative has been involved in a bitter and costly divorce or dispute over a neighbor’s adjoining property line. Perhaps, you know of brothers and sisters at odds about whether mom or dad should live independently or go into an assisted living facility. Another example might be business partnership issues such as compensation, direction, succession, buyouts, or termination.
Mediation is a process whereby a trained and impartial professional helps people reach an agreement resolving a dispute or issue. In mediation, the parties are in charge of making the decisions and the mediator’s role is to help develop options, overcome roadblocks, achieve consensus, and write up the parties’ agreement at the conclusion. This is most often done in a safe environment around a conference room table with the mediator and parties brainstorming solutions to whatever issues are important to each party.
In mediated divorces, parents decide how they will share access to their children in their parenting plan and how they will split up their property. In family mediations, children and sometimes their parents gather face-to-face to resolve differences about estate planning issues, dealing with aging parents, or bringing in new management for family businesses. With the help of a trained mediator, neighbors can address their real needs and interests instead of asking a judge or arbitrator to rule on their legal rights. In business mediations, partners can preserve their relationships while reaching “Win-Win” agreements on how to fairly split the profits or buy-out a retiring principal.
With the help of a trained and experienced mediator, divorcing couples and people in conflict can resolve their issues in a cost-effective and dignified way while preserving key relationships and avoiding protracted litigation.
Have you ever thought, “I’d just like a lawyer to review this agreement or coach me “behind the scenes” on a negotiation strategy during a divorce mediation. Or, perhaps, the need is to review an offer by a spouse during mediation of a divorce or the settlement agreement reached at the conclusion of the divorce. Maybe you have downloaded the divorce, legal separation, or parenting act forms off the Internet but don’t know what to do with these legal papers to complete your divorce. Probably, you assume that retaining a lawyer means thousands of dollars in an upfront retainer plus a lawyer billing time for months or years in representing you from the beginning to the end of the legal process.
That is no longer the case thanks to Limited Legal Services Representation or, as it is sometimes called, Unbundled Services. This is a form of legal assistance where attorney and client define the precise type of help you need. The lawyer’s services are geared to your stated needs and budget. After discussing this, you and your lawyer enter into an agreement that spells out the services to be provided and the lawyer’s fees for this limited service.
Retaining a lawyer for Limited Legal Services assures that there are no surprises-you are able to limit your legal services and associated costs by defining them in advance.