Collaborative law can be used to resolve disputes in many areas of law, but it's really taken off in the past few years as a means of resolving family law disputes. It's not for everyone, but like other means of alternate dispute resolution and staying out of court, it's a tool that might work for you.
The collaborative process is designed to enable divorcing parties, as well as parties involved in other kinds of disputes, to resolve their differences in a non-adversarial setting, with negotiations and representation by counsel. In other words, it's a way to attempt to creatively hammer out solutions without "fighting it out" in court when the parties are able to work in good faith toward resolution, even though they may not be in a situation of easy agreement. It's also a way of keeping the dispute more private, and keeping control over the outcome.
To find out more, and to consider whether a collaborative solution might work and be advantageous for both you and your spouse -- or disputing other, continue reading more about cooperative law and collaborative family law at the website of collaborative family lawyers of South Florida...
Cooperative law is similar in many ways to collaborative law, but it does not involve the requirement that the parties sign a participation agreement, or that the lawyers involved agree to withdraw from representation of their clients if negotiations break down and litigation will ensue.
At its best, it has more in common, perhaps, with deal-making negotiations, and also is not unlike a more sophisticated settlement negotiation. Unlike these two kinds of negotiation, cooperative law implies some commonality of goals of the parties, as well as an honest desire to work through a problem to achieve a resolution that is satisfactory to both sides.
Like anything else, whether that be mediation, arbitration, litigation, or any other method used to resolve a dispute between parties, both collaborative law and cooperative law are tools to be used when the situation is appropriate for them. Of primary importance, is that the tools used be appropriate for the circumstances at hand. Everything has its benefits and drawbacks. Just as mediation, arbitration, and litigation have have their upsides and downsides, neither collaborative law nor cooperative law are one-size-fits-all panaceas for all cases, or without some controversy. What works wonders for one person, might not be appropriate for another. Make informed decisions, and get a second opinion if you feel pressured or are not sure.
