Collaborative family law is about working together with your husband, wife, or ex-partner and your respective family lawyers to reach an agreement that works best for you and your family . You and your ex-partner and the two family solicitors agree not to enter court proceedings other than to obtain a divorce.
The gel that binds you and your family lawyers to find a collaborative solution is that if you or your ex-partner decide that you cannot reach agreement, both family lawyers are unable to represent you going forward. The commitment not to go to court gives everyone a real focus on reaching a solution that meets your family’s needs.
Advantages Of Collaborative Family Law
The advantages of collaborative family law are:
- Speed – the family lawyers work at your pace rather than at the speed of the court.
- Cost – the process is flexible and does not involve a series of court hearings.
- Flexibility – in traditional court proceedings, the judge must apply the law, whilst the collaborative law process is about finding a flexible, collaborative solution that suits you and your ex-partner. That might involve continuing to live in separate parts of a farm or operating a business together after your divorce with the benefit of a financial court order and new shareholders agreement or co-parenting with a detailed parenting plan to set out your agreed ground rules.
- Amicable – although the collaborative process can be emotionally tough on you and your ex-partner and involve compromise to reach a solution, it is less adversarial and divisive than traditional court proceedings. Therefore, it gives you an improved chance of being able to co-parent your children successfully after your divorce or to be able to be civil to one another at family events.
- Neutral – As part of the collaborative process you can introduce third party neutrals to assist in your journey. For example, if a business needs valued we can appoint a financial neutral to advise on the business value and the best options for the business longer term. Similarly, if you were struggling to cope with the separation we can appoint a family consultant who would attend the meeting to support you and your ex-partner in the process.
The Collaborative Family Law Process
The collaborative process involves a series of meetings between the couple and their family lawyers to reach a collaborative solution.
The process starts with the parties signing a participation agreement to commit them to the process. A series of meetings are then held with the input of other professionals where necessary.
When a collaborative solution is reached, the agreed childcare arrangements can be recorded in a parenting plan, and the financial settlement in an agreed financial agreement.
Family Law Specialists Glasgow, Aberdeen, Scotland
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