What is Collaborative Practice?
You and your partner are separating and you probably have a long list of questions and concerns about your children, your money, and your assets.
On top of that, you might be facing some big feelings: mistrust, resentment, loss, or fear of the unknown.
Is there a way to address those realities without going to court?
Collaborative Practice is a process designed to allow divorcing or separating couples come to an affordable agreement with the support of specially trained professionals. You and your partner sign on to the Collaborative Process, the hallmark of which is an agreement not to go to court. Using interest-based negotiation, Collaborative Family Lawyers will walk you and your partner through each issue that needs to be resolved.
To help you with financial or emotional concerns, your specially trained team of Registered Collaborative Professionals can also include:
Financial Professionals (such as Chartered Professional Accountants, Certified Divorce Financial Analysts, Chartered Business Valuators)
Family Specialists (such as Psychologists, Registered Social Workers, and divorce coaches).
You and your partner will work together with your team to build a mutually beneficial separation/divorce agreement - piece by piece, issue by issue - with the guidance of these specialists. No one will pressure you to settle or threaten to go to court if they can’t get their way.
Financial uncertainty can be a big source of tension and worry.
What will your financial future look like?
Can you afford to keep the house or will you have to move?
Are you going to be able to keep your retirement plans on track?
How does your business get valued and what will happen with your shares?
Our Collaboratively trained Financial Professionals have a variety of designations and skill sets to help answer even the most complex financial issues. You will get the knowledge you need to make informed financial decisions. Our Financial Professionals will give you peace of mind that you are making the right financial decisions for you and your children.
High levels of stress and conflict can be harmful to children.
Are you sure that your kids aren’t struggling with your separation?
How do you tell them if you haven’t already?
How will you know that they are “okay”?
Do you need help developing an effective co-parenting plan?
You can rely on our Collaboratively trained Family Specialists to address all of your concerns. Our Family Specialists will help you, the two people that love your child the most, make sure agree that your children do not get stuck in the middle. The Family Specialist will also teach you and your partner how manage stress and emotions, and how to communicate with each other effectively.
What does the Collaborative Process look like?
First, contact any one of our Collaborative Professionals (Lawyer, Family Specialist, or Financial Professional). They will help you get started and give you more detailed information about the process. Once you and your partner have decided to use to the Collaborative process, then you will meet with your lawyer one-on-one to help them identify your goals and interests which will be used to consider the options you will generate later on in the process.
Next, you may meet with a Family Specialist so they can understand your unique family dynamics, discuss any concerns you may have about your children, and any co-parenting issues. The Family Specialist will meet with both parents separately, with each parent with the children, and with each child alone. This ensures that the children’s well-being and interests are addressed while supporting the parents in creating effective solutions to help the family transition.
You will also meet with a Financial Professional who will discuss your financial concerns and interests in the family property. They will help you gather all the financial information you will need to provide to your lawyer, and even help you create a lifestyle budget going forward. When needed, additional Financial Professionals can be added to the collaborative team to provide specialized services like business valuations, real estate appraisals, mortgage pre-approvals, and income determination necessary for support calculations.
Once your team is selected, you and your partner will meet with your lawyers together; this is called a 4-way meeting. At the first 4-way meeting, the four of you review and sign the Participation Agreement. It describes this private, out of court settlement process, and ensures that all of you are 100% committed to settling the issues with open and respectful communication. An agenda of items to discuss at the next meeting will be set and homework items will be assigned to ensure efficient future meetings. The number of 4-way meetings varies from case to case, depending on the complexity and number of issues to be resolved.
At the subsequent meetings, the lawyers will help you and your partner to generate options, to understand the law and to work out solutions that fit you both. When the issues are resolved, the agreements that you’ve reached along the way will be set out in a legally binding settlement agreement. Your own lawyer will give you independent legal advice separate and apart from your partner and their lawyer before signing the agreement.
When you have a signed settlement agreement, if you are married, you and your partner can file a Joint Statement of Claim for Divorce and the other related documents to get divorced without ever setting foot in a courtroom. Many Registered Collaborative Family Professionals are taking full advantage of online meeting technology which means that a lot of the work can be done from the comfort of your home. No wonder Collaborative Practice is changing the ways couples dissolve their relationships.
If you are seeking to divorce or separate with less stress, happier children, and without court appearances, then the Collaborative Process is for you. You can start learning more by contacting a Registered Collaborative Professional in your area.
Go to www.divorceseparation.ca or www.collaborativepractice.ca to find a Collaborative Professional.
