Collaborative Law
The courtroom does not have to be the only place where decisions are made for families going through divorce and other family law conflicts. Collaborative Law is a process whereby both parties and their attorneys commit to resolving all disputes without going to court. You can trust the collaboratively trained attorneys at Rosen & Fitzhugh to guide you through this process.
What is Collaborative Law?
Almost everyone knows someone who has been through a divorce or a child custody case, and perhaps you have already been through this yourself before coming to see an attorney at Rosen & Fitzhugh. If that divorce included litigation and court appearances, it was most likely expensive. Divorces can be very public, and custody cases especially can be destructive to families. Someone may seem to be the “victor” in court, but rarely is there a winner. Collaborative law focuses on the parties’ goals, and the attorneys and other professionals assist the parties in reaching those goals. In doing so, Collaborative Law changes the focus from who is at fault, to how to solve problems.
In the Collaborative Process, issues to be resolved are identified during a series of joint meetings, and the parties, not the court, decide the pace of the process. At the core of all Collaborative Law cases is the Collaborative Participation Agreement which is signed by the parties and is a binding agreement. By signing this Agreement, the parties agree, among other things, to full disclosure and they also agree not to go to court and not to threaten to go to court. Unlike litigation, in collaboration there is an atmosphere of honesty, integrity and cooperation, with everyone working towards the future well being of the family. The Collaborative Process can begin as soon as each party retains an attorney who is collaboratively trained. Each party must be represented by an attorney from a different firm. Collaboratively trained attorneys in our area can be found at: www.collaborativepractice.comor www.collaborativeprofessionalsofrichmond.com.
The following video explains the collaborative process: http://video.collaborativepractice.com/video/default.html
The Collaborative Process involves other professionals, more specifically, financial specialists and mental health professionals trained as child specialists and communication coaches. Working together, these collaboratively trained professionals engage with the attorneys and the family in a team approach. This approach allows neutral professionals with an entirely different set of skill sets to assess and offer suggestions regarding finances, parenting, and communication skills. While these outside professionals offer suggestions, the parties never lose the ultimate decision making authority. The professionals, including the attorneys, are there as resources for the parties. Ultimately, the goal is for the parties to create the solutions that best fit the unique needs of their family.
If you would like to utilize the Collaborative Law Process to resolve a family law dispute, trust the collaboratively trained attorneys at Rosen & Fitzhugh to guide you through the process.
Please call our office to schedule an initial consultation to discuss the Collaborative Law Process or click here to email us to schedule an appointment. Once you have scheduled an appointment, please click here to download, print and complete our Client Information form. Bring the completed form with you to your appointment.
Notice and Disclaimer: This website and the information on the website presents general information about the law firm of Rosen & Fitzhugh and is not intended to provide legal services or legal advice. If you would like to become a client of Rosen & Fitzhugh and to obtain legal advice from our firm, you must establish an attorney client relationship with us by meeting with us; executing a Retainer Agreement; and paying a Retainer to us. Until that time, you have not retained us and we are not your attorneys.