In April 1304, Edward I laid siege to Stirling Castle, a garrison led by Sir William Oliphant. This lasted for many months and resulted in the development of a new massive siege engine known as a Warwolf. While the concept of collaborative law would have been foreign to these leaders, you do not need to let your divorce or separation follow a similar path.
So what is collaborative law? With a ‘traditional’ divorce, each party will instruct a solicitor to negotiate on their behalf. This can lead to parties becoming more entrenched in their positions with ‘battle lines’ being drawn and, ultimately, fully contested and expensive court proceedings. Collaborative law is designed to steer people away from that and the potential damage that can, as a result, be caused to relationships in the longer term.
Collaborative law is a process where both parties instruct their own lawyer but those lawyers are trained to assist the parties in resolving issues together. This is achieved in different ways. At the outset, everyone involved signs a commitment not to go to court (save for ratification of any final agreement achieved). It is a process designed to be more open and encourages cooperation with discussions taking place face to face to encourage more effective communication. The aim is to find an outcome that is best for the family as a whole, rather than for any individual.
There will always be those who want to wheel out the Warwolf but, for the right couples, there is an alternative through the collaborative law process. If you want to approach matters in as dignified manner as possible and keep control of what is happening then this may be an option for you to consider.
To find out more about collaborative law and how it can help you then contact one of our trained collaborative lawyers.