Collaborative Divorce

Collaborative Divorce:
A family-centric, co-operative process
that avoids going to court

Collaborative Divorce is a process designed to navigate separation and divorce while avoiding adversarial, time-consuming and stressful impacts of going to court. It is an opportunity to invest in your family, not your fight.

 

With an emphasis on teamwork, Collaborative Divorce fosters respectful communication and a commitment to stay out of court so that the focus can remain on a mutually agreeable settlement. This allows couples to reach a separation agreement that is creative, customized and satisfactory for everyone – including any children involved.

 

Timothy as your collaboratively-trained lawyer becomes your subject matter expert, not a gladiator.

Is Collaborative Divorce right for you? Our online questionnaire can help determine whether a collaborative approach makes sense for you and your family.

Separation and divorce don’t have to be adversarial. Out-of-court and no court options can be an effective way to settle difficult matters like parenting time, and decision making; the sale or maintenance of the family home; pet ownership and custody; or financial matters like support or how a family business is divided. Many couples find it to be a less-stressful way to handle the transition to the new normal, post-divorce.

In the right situation, Collaborative Divorce can be particularly effective at reducing disruption when it comes to children or other close family members through the divorce process. It’s a team approach, sometimes with a family relations neutral who will help with tough emotions and schedules, or a financial neutral who can create plans to meet obligations and finance realistic lifestyle changes.

Other situations in which Collaborative Practice may be beneficial

Non-family matters, too, are ripe for collaborative resolution. From Testamentary & Estate matters to home renovation disputes, people who want to resolve their personal and financial disputes without judges and expensive litigation should consider collaborative, out-of-court solutions with SullivanLaw.

In our experience, clients are best served when their lawyer is experienced in and has access to all methods of out-of-court resolution, like co-operative negotiation, Collaborative Divorce and mediation. When clients receive clear, considered guidance from the beginning, they are more likely to arrive at a resolution that is as expedient and economical as possible.

Out-of-court resolutions can include:

  • Cohabitation agreements
  • Pre-nuptial and marriage contracts
  • Loans and grants from parents to adult children
  • Family Law disputes
  • Custody, access and child support 
  • Spousal support and family finances
  • Construction disputes
  • Employment contracts
  • Estate and trusts settlement
  • Conflicts with neighbours
  • Lawyer’s fee disputes
  • Independent Legal Advice