A Toronto boutique law firm changing the way people divorce

Collaborative law is an alternative to the traditional court-based approach that avoids costly court proceedings, preserves relationships and greatly reduces stress and the time required to reach a mutually agreeable…

…legally binding separation agreement. It is non-adversarial and requires both parties to work together in good faith through a participation agreement that is facilitated by a team of two specially trained Collaborative Lawyers and neutral third-party specialists.

The process begins with the assembly of a ‘Collaborative Team’ that will manage or ‘steward’ the journey, which starts with each party hiring a Collaborative Lawyer who is specially trained and certified in the collaborative process. We then engage the expert services of a Financial Neutral, jointly chosen by the clients to evaluate, manage, and sort through family assets, while determining realistic and forward-looking budgets. If children are involved, a Social Worker is included on the Collaborative Team. Both parties agree upon the choice of a social worker, who is hired on a joint retainer. This social worker can also meet with the children alone and help give them a voice (in a safe way), making the process as child-focused as possible. This collective of professionals forms the Collaborative Team.

The clients then sign a participation agreement, attesting that they are not proceeding to court and are going to negotiate in good faith. This paves the way for the collaborative approach. Next, the Collaborative Team meets without the spouses and agrees upon an agenda for the first meeting. A date is then set for a mandatory, in-person (or through online video during times of physical distancing) meeting involving the entire team and the spouses, at which time the parties arrive prepared to negotiate. A full list of issues is addressed in this meeting. Sometimes we start with the smaller, simpler issues first and then move to the more complex areas. This helps establish trust in the process, trust in the team, and trust in the clients’ ability to reach agreements.

Afterward, the Collaborative Team members debrief, without the clients present. At this time, they set an agenda for the next meeting. This process is followed until all issues are acceptably resolved. When all the issues have been dealt with successfully, both of the Collaborative Lawyers work together in preparing a legally binding separation agreement for review. Once this agreement has been signed, the process is complete – without the time, stress, expense, and public disclosure associated with traditional court-based processes.