What is the collaborative process?

In a nutshell, a co-operative and amicable way to resolve issues arising in respect of a marriage / relationship breakdown, such as how to organise arrangements for your children and / or how to organise financial matters.  It involves you, your spouse / partner and your respective lawyers all working together to create agreements with which you are both comfortable and are able to move forward.

Why should we use it?

In the collaborative process, you have the opportunity to work with other professionals alongside your lawyer, including financial advisors, family consultants or accountants, all of whom can provide you with specialist help and support if and when it is needed.  The other significant advantage of the collaborative process is that it is entirely based on open communication, so the “smoke and mirrors” of a court-based process are taken away, and all advice is given “in public” with the aim of reaching solutions by agreement rather than through litigation.

How does it work?

You and your spouse / partner will each need to instruct specially qualified lawyers, and after initial separate meetings with your separate lawyers, you will work towards arranging your first “four-way” meeting.  It is referred to as a four-way meeting because it typically involves you, your spouse / partner, and your respective lawyers.  The two lawyers will also speak to each other to plan the first meeting, because one of the key features of the collaborative process is that there is more direct communication and less letter/email writing.

What happens in the meetings?

Ultimately this is a matter for you and your spouse / partner.  At the first four-way meeting, the lawyers will be explaining the process and making sure you understand that you are committing to reaching agreement, ideally without going to Court, and often all four people will sign an agreement confirming this.

You and your spouse / partner will be asked to share your goals and why you chose this process, and together, you will plan the agenda for the next meeting.  Typically, this would include a discussion about how the children are managing the changing circumstances and could also include an initial discussion about how to share financial information.

In the meetings that follow, you can talk about all the issues and concerns that need to be addressed and consider whether you need to include any other professionals to assist / support you.  For example, you might want to bring in a “financial neutral” to talk about what different financial agreements might look like in real life and how you might both move forward financially.  There is no limit on the number of meetings that you can have, as the key is to discuss and work towards resolving all issues in the meetings rather than in letters / emails going back and forth between your respective legal advisors.

In the final meeting, you will typically both sign written documents setting out what has been agreed, and the lawyers will explain the next steps to be taken in order to implement those agreements.  These next steps can include an agreement to issue a joint divorce application, or to submit a financial remedy order by consent to the court for approval.

How long does it take?

There is no fixed timetable, meaning that the process can move as quickly or slowly as you and your spouse / partner need or want it to.  The agendas are set by the two of you, with assistance from your lawyers where needed and so there is a significant degree of flexibility.
How will I know if it is right for my family?

The collaborative process works well where both spouses / partners share a hope of being able to remain on amicable terms, often where there are young children involved and there is a recognition that it is better for the children to see their parents working together rather than fighting one another through the court process.

Are there any reasons why I shouldn’t use the collaborative process?

If your family breakdown has been the result of domestic abuse, you may feel uncomfortable having to communicate directly with your spouse / partner in this process.  Four-way meetings can be via video call if you are comfortable with that, but ultimately, this process is reliant on all parties feeling that they can trust the other people involved, and if that is not the case for you, you may want to discuss other options with your lawyer.

Support

In the Porter Dodson family team, we help families across Dorset and Somerset, and further afield. We are proud to have several collaboratively trained lawyers and would be happy to discuss all options with you.