Process Choices : Collaborative Family Law
Attorneys Who Focus Soley on Reaching an Agreement Out of Court
While almost all cases eventually settle, the method of settlement that you use will have a very big impact on the quality of the agreement that you reach. While very few cases go to trial, most attorneys file papers with the court before a settlement is reached so that they can seek the court assistance during the time the case is progressing through the process. In these situations, the attorneys may go to the court for contested matters through motions and other forms of request or the court may require the attorneys and the parties to come to the court to work on a resolution of the matter through settlement conferences, case management conferences, early neutral evaluations, mediation or other court directed methods. While all of these methods can be helpful in settling matters, a certain amount of acrimony can be created when negotiation is done "in the shadow of the courthouse" and the parties give up some of the control of the case when they chose to file papers with the court. An increasingly popular way to keep the settlement discussions out of court altogether is to use the Collaborative Method of resolving your case.
Collaborative Law is a way of practicing law in which the attorneys agree to assist the parties using cooperative strategies rather than adversarial techniques and litigation. This early non-adversarial participation allows the attorneys to use analysis and reasoning to help their clients solve problems and creates a positive context for settlement. In Collaborative law cases, the attorneys and the clients all sign an agreement saying that, if one of the parties choose to go to court, both parties must use different attorneys. In the overwhelming majority of Collaborative Law cases, this tremendous disincentive essentially eliminates court as an option and forces clients and their attorneys to find more creative and civil ways to resolve their conflicts.
Collaborative Law was started in 1990 by Stu Webb, a Minneapolis attorney and one of the many professionals who served on the original divorceChoice.com Advisory Board. Because of its tremendous success in providing clients with an option that truly serves their interests, Collaborative Family Law has spread throughout North America, Europe and Australia.
The Collaborative Method is described in a new book written by Stu Webb, the founder of the Collaborative Method and Ron Ousky, the creator of this website and a leader in the Collaborative Movement. The book, entitled The Collaborative Method of Divorce. The Revolutionary Method that Results in Less Stress, Lower Costs and Happier Kids--Without Going to Court is available in bookstores everywhere by June 2006 and can be ordered at Amazon.com.
Additional information about Collaborative Law in Minnesota can be found at www.collaborativelaw.org.
For information about Collaborative Law throughout the world, go to www.Collaborativepractice.com.