Collaborative law

Collaborative law, also known as collaborative practice, divorce, or family law, is a legal process through which couples who have decided to separate or end their marriage work together with a team of collaboratively trained professionals including lawyers, divorce coaches, and financial professionals to achieve a settlement that meets the needs of both parties and their children without the need for litigation. The process allows parties to obtain a fair settlement while minimizing the time, cost, uncertainty, and acrimony that can accompany a litigious divorce or separation. Couples initiate this voluntary process by signing a contract (a "participation agreement") binding each other to the process and disqualifying their respective lawyer's right to represent either one in any future family-related litigation.

The collaborative law process can also facilitate a broad range of other family issues including disputes between parents and the drafting of pre- and post-marital (or prenuptial and postnuptial) contracts. Given the oppositional nature of the traditional method of creating pre-marital contracts, many couples prefer to begin their married life with documents drawn up consensually and mutually.

Collaborative law processes have the added benefit of being cost-efficient for the involved parties. Assigning all the necessary tasks to specialized professionals without duplicating effort reduces costs for the parties. These cost efficiencies, in addition to other potential benefits, have led parties in other contexts to explore the use of collaborative law to resolve disputes, including M&A transactions.