Traditional/Litigation
Litigation is the traditional divorce process, whereby both parties hire attorneys, who provide legal advice and represent the positions of their client in negotiations and court hearings. This model is an adversarial process in which each attorney advocates positions based on the personal wants, needs and viewpoints of their client. The parties communicate primarily through their attorneys, rather than directly with one another, regarding their positions, proposals and counterproposals on the issues in their divorce.
The process may involve the use of formal legal procedures, known as ““discovery”” to secure financial and other relevant information. Discovery may include the use of depositions (a formal taking of testimony before a court reporter) and the subpoenaing of documents or other material believed to be relevant to the issues. Further, each party may hire experts to support their positions. These experts may include psychologists, real estate and personal property appraisers, business valuation specialists, accountants and others.
If the parties dispute the legal custody or physical placement schedule of their children, the court will appoint a third attorney, called a Guardian ad Litem, to participate in the case as an advocate for the ““best interests”” of the children. Ultimately, if agreements are not reached, parties and other witnesses testify before a judge who makes a ruling on each disputed issue. Most litigation divorces are eventually settled, but often after substantial time, money and emotion has been spent in conflict. Further, both parties often find that they are dissatisfied with the outcome and are likely to return to court in the future to change the outcome or resolve disputes.
Collaborative Divorce
Collaborative divorce is a dispute resolution method whereby each party hires an attorney and all four work together in a cooperative, non-adversarial process
with
a mutual goal of reaching a fair settlement of all issues, while avoiding the
emotional and financial expense of traditional litigation. The parties and
attorneys agree to communicate and negotiate directly with one another in
structured four-way settlement meetings. A structured process for gathering
information and communicating at and between four-way meetings is also
established and followed. Binding commitments, pursuant to a Stipulation and
Order, are made by both parties and their respective attorneys to voluntarily
disclose all financial and other relevant information, to proceed respectfully
and in good faith in settlement negotiations and to refrain from the threat or
use of litigation. The parties agree that they will not go to court to resolve
issues. Key to the process is the agreement that if either party chooses to go
to court, both collaborative attorneys must withdraw. Collaborative attorneys
are specifically trained as settlement specialists, rather than potential
litigators. When necessary, experts are brought into the process as neutrals who
are jointly retained by the parties. The collaborative divorce process may
involve a team approach; including financial advisors and mental health
professionals as coaches and child specialists. The goal of the experts is to
educate the parties and explore settlement options to meet the needs of both
parties and their children.This process encourages creative problem solving,
win-win
negotiations, and resolutions that meet the needs of all members of the family.
International experience indicates that the collaborative divorce process
produces greater satisfaction of the parties and better results for children,
and parties who are less likely to return to court to litigate issues in the
future. Most significantly, the parties are directly involved in the process and
retain control over their outcome.