Collaborative Law

Separation and divorce are often a time of conflict and heartache but having the right professional advice and support can make all the difference.

Collaborative law is a way of providing you and your partner with the opportunity to work together to resolve the issues which inevitably arise when a decision has been made to part.

Fiona Moffat, Managing Partner and Family Law Solicitor is a member of the Derby Collaborative Law Group. This is a local group of collaborative lawyers who work together and with separating couples, to provide alternative ways for them to resolve their disputes without going to court.

The lawyers in the group help you to focus on a positive final outcome and you can be confident that they will provide you with clear direction, guiding you every step of the way through what feels like a vast and complex maze.

Each lawyer is a member of Resolution and they have undergone specialist training to work as collaborative lawyers. They are all committed to a code of conduct to help and support you through the process.

How Does Collaborative Law Work?

You each have to appoint your own lawyer, but instead of conducting negotiations between you and your partner by letter or phone, you and your partner and your respective lawyers will meet to work through the process of achieving your final outcome face-to-face. This means that you will feel more in control of the process and will be able to put your point over yourself if you wish to.

You will have your lawyer by your side throughout the process and you will have their support and legal advice at every step of the way.

If you choose this route, you must make sure that the lawyer you have chosen is collaboratively trained.

To help you we have a comprehensive list of key lawyers in Derby and the surrounding area who are collaboratively trained – they are just a phone call away.

How Is Collaborative Law Different?

The possibility of resolving issues this way may be beneficial for several reasons:

  • Sometimes only a couple of meetings are needed, on other occasions four or five. These meetings follow agendas set by you and your partner, so that you can talk about the really important issues
  • The process helps you and your partner to retain a level of communication which is important if you need to retain contact in the future
  • You and your partner can come to agreement yourselves as to what is best for you both in your new lives
  • The process provides you with the confidence, or ‘know-how’, to negotiate and communicate face-to-face with your partner, with the security of having your solicitor present
  • Experts such as financial advisors can be involved in the meetings to provide information for the couple to help them make fully informed decisions quickly and speed up resolution
  • The meetings are a non-aggressive environment and are ideal when you are coping with relationship breakdown
  • Cases are often resolved more quickly and sometimes with less cost than through the court system

How Can Timms Help?

If you would like to discuss your collaborative law options, please contact us on freephone 0800 011 6666 or reach us by email at legal@timms-law.com. 

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