The Collaborative Process provides a safe non-adversarial environment for parties to find creative solutions efficiently and with dignity. It is designed to minimize the impact of separation and divorce on you and your children.
The Collaborative Process requires a commitment by both parties to keep their dispute out of the courtroom and allows parties to find solutions based on their goals and interests. With the help of a professional team, the parties have the freedom and flexibility to problem solve and explore a wide variety of options to find the one that best meets the needs of their family. Settlements reached through the Collaborative Process are long lasting because they take into account the parties’ desires and the specific needs of the family.
Both parties must commit to sharing all relevant information with each other in a confidential setting, and to resolve their differences without litigation. Together with their attorneys, the parties form a professional team that helps identify the key questions to be answered, and develop and evaluate options to address their concerns.. While the professional team guides the parties through the dispute resolution process, the parties decide what their path forward will be.
In a traditional legal process, each party is focused on his or her own goals and interests, each looking to gain a legal or tactical advantage over one another. If a case in the traditional legal process goes to trial, a judge makes the final decisions for the parties. In the Collaborative Process, both parties work together with their team to find solutions best suited for everyone.
At a minimum, Collaborative teams must include an attorney for each party. Teams may also include mental health professionals serving as coaches, neutral financial experts , and child specialists depending on the circumstances of the case. The entire Collaborative team is actively involved in the Collaborative Process.
The parties get to decide their and their children’s future together. The Collaborative Process provides a structure in which the parties can discuss their goals, interests, and the needs of their family in an open, supportive, and respectful setting. Unlike the traditional legal process, the Collaborative Process allows parties to share their viewpoints directly with one another in a confidential environment. The Collaborative Process reduces the adversarial aspects of family disputes and moves the focus to the needs of the whole family.
Parties can use the Collaborative Process to resolve any type of family dispute including divorce, property division, spousal support, child support, child custody, child visitation, post-divorce matters, and prenuptial or postnuptial agreements.
The Collaborative Process will work for you if you want a dispute resolution process that allows you to problem solve by exchanging ideas and developing solutions customized to you and your family. The forward-looking process maintains a focus on your goals, interests, and children.
The Collaborative Process develops creative, personal, and cost-effective solutions for your family. David L. Ginsberg and Stephanie J. Smith, are collaboratively-trained attorneys, and Dr. Leah Nathan is a collaboratively trained coach. Please feel free to contact David, Stephanie, or Leah to learn more about the Collaborative Process.
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