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| The Principles of Collaborative Law |
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| • | The voluntary and free exchange of information. |
| • | A commitment from those involved not to threaten or take court proceedings. |
| • | An ability to freely negotiate in a controlled, safe and respectful setting. |
| • | A commitment to a settlement which is mutually acceptable to both clients. |
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| The Process |
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| • | Four-way meetings take place between the lawyers and clients with little correspondence being exchanged between the lawyers. |
| • | The lawyers are there to facilitate agreement, advise on the law as appropriate, ensure that the Principles of Collaborative Law are adhered to and to draft an agreement into a legally recognised form. |
| • | Where necessary experts can be called upon to assist, such as forensic advisers, counsellors and mediators.
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| • | If no agreement can be reached, new lawyers will have to be instructed for court proceedings. |
| • | The lawyers will discuss your case both before and after the four-way meetings to identify outstanding issues, ensure that you and your partner retain control of the process and reduce the scope for misunderstanding. |
| • | The meetings are minuted and action points for future meetings are agreed upon. |
| • | After each four-way meeting, you may need to meet with your lawyer to discuss issues that have arisen and further matters that still have to be addressed. |
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| Family Consultants |
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| During the Collaborative Law process, we may need to introduce other professionals to the case. |
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| For example, one or both of you may be finding it difficult to come to terms with the breakdown of the relationship and to assist you in approaching the process in a constructive manner, we have access to counselling and mediation services. There also may be an aspect of your case which will involve expert financial advice such as pensions or companies. We may therefore need to jointly instruct a financial adviser to provide us with an independent opinion on the most suitable way forward. |
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| To ensure that our Family Consultants are committed to the principles of Collaborative Family Law practice, it is expected that each Family Consultant will undergo training and over the course of the next year, a number of training courses are planned. |
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| View a list of Family Consultants in the East Midlands. |
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| How Do You Find a Collaborative Lawyer |
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| Only trained and registered lawyers can act as Collaborative Lawyers. You must each have your own lawyer and as there are now over 40 such lawyers in the East Midlands area, we are sure that you will be able to find one suitable for your case. |
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| View a list of Collaborative Lawyers in the East Midlands. |
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| What Is Our Overriding Aim |
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| Divorce and separation is both an ending and a beginning. We, as Collaborative Lawyers, are aware of the enormous anguish that is often caused by divorce and separation and we therefore aim to find ways which will enable you to move forward in a respectful and dignified manner thereby making it a smoother transition to the next stage of your life. |
