When most people think of divorce, they think of hiring a lawyer to fight in court for what they want. Too often this leads to an emotionally and financially costly battle for the parties and their children. Feelings are hurt, relationships are strained, and typically no one gets what he or she wanted.
Collaborate divorce is a fresh approach to divorce for couples who do not want to air their private matters in a public courtroom and who want to reach an agreement together with the advice and guidance of their attorneys.
In the collaborative divorce process, each party hires a collaboratively trained attorney to represent his or her interests when negotiating an agreement. The parties voluntarily enter into a collaborative agreement to exchange information and not to litigate. (Click here to find a list of collaborative law attorneys in Massachusetts.)
Hiring a Quincy Collaborative Divorce Attorney
I’m Carolan Hardy. As a collaborative law attorney, I received specialized collaborative law training with other collaborative attorneys, coaches, mental health professionals and financial professionals. I am committed to helping my clients through the divorce process in a respectful, informed manner as quickly and cost-effectively as possible. Contact me to schedule a free consultation.
What is Collaborative Divorce?
In the collaborative process, all the parties agree that they will work to resolve the issues of divorce outside of court. In addition to specially trained attorneys, the parties usually hire a coach, typically a mental health professional whose job is to help foster communication and to work with the parties on the emotional aspects of the divorce. The parties may also choose to hire financial advisors, tax experts or parent coordinators to deal with issues of property division and child custody.
All the experts used in the collaborative divorce process are chosen together and hired as neutral parties, not advocating for one or the other party. This saves the couple both time and money while ensuring that each party has the advice and guidance of an attorney.
Collaborative law differs from divorce mediation in that each party is represented by his/her own attorney. While still representing their party, the attorneys and resource people who are brought into the settlement process, are working collaboratively together to help the parties reach agreement. Parties to the collaborative process all sign an agreement to work outside of court. If the process should break down or one party wants to go through litigation, then the parties will need to hire new attorneys.
Like mediation, you can work as quickly or as slowly as you need
If you decide that you want a collaborative divorce you will need to let your spouse know about the collaborative process so he or she can talk with and hire a specially trained attorney. When you meet with me, I can advise you about how you can start that conversation.
Call me at 617-750-9709 to schedule a free initial consultation at my Quincy or Hingham office.