Oftentimes when people think of the practice of family law, they imagine a hostile process where former spouses are pitted against one another by their lawyers. People generally picture the type of law they see on TV which is portrayed as highly adversarial and usually not in the best interests of the parties involved. In order to distance the profession from such negative misconceptions, over the last twenty years, collaborative family law has emerged as an alternative approach to the practice of family law.
Collaborative family law, also known as collaborative practice, is a form of dispute resolution where the parties work together to resolve their family issues out of court with the help of their collaborative family lawyers. The goal of collaborative family law is to allow the parties, in the midst of divorce or separation, to work collaboratively with each other, their lawyers and other third-party specialists to come to a mutually agreeable resolution of the legal issues stemming from their relationship breakdown.
This approach aims to reduce conflict and is premised on honesty and respect between the parties. Usually, you have several meetings with your collaborative professionals before you agree on your issues. Once an agreement has been reached, the collaborative lawyers will draft a binding agreement such as a separation agreement, which incorporates all the agreed upon terms.
If you are in search of a family lawyer to assist you with your legal issues, consider a lawyer who takes more of a collaborative approach to the problems.
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