Difference between revisions of "Collaborative Negotiation"

You may want to have a look at the section on "[[Family Law Mediation#Tips for successful mediation|Tips for successful mediation]]" in the page on [[Family Law Mediation]] in this chapter for information about communication skills that can be helpful during the negotiation process.

The terms of the settlement will be put into either a formal separation agreement by one of the lawyers. The parties and the other lawyer will all be asked for comment and changes and adjustments will be made before the separation agreement is signed.

The collaborative process normally ends with the signing of the final agreement. However, until and unless the participation agreement is cancelled or set aside, the lawyers will remain bound by the terms of the agreement and cannot start a court proceeding on things covered by the separation agreement, even to enforce the agreement.

The collaborative team includes the parties' lawyers, family law lawyers with special training in collaborative processes, and may also include mental health professionals, usually psychologists or registered clinical counsellors, who work as the parties' divorce coaches, a financial specialist and a child specialist. The team members work cooperatively with each other and the parties, and sometimes the parties' children.  

The degree to which each of these professionals may become involved will depend on the particular circumstances of each couple. For some couples, the child specialist will become the key team member, for others it may be their divorce coaches. A financial specialist may be unnecessary when the financial issues are straightforward, but when they are particularly complicated, the financial specialist may be critical to the success of the collaborative process.

The role of the lawyers in the collaborative process is to advance the needs and protect the interests of their respective clients. The lawyers advise their clients on their legal rights and obligations, and provide them with information about the law, and the probable long- and short-term results of any particular decision.

However, in the collaborative approach to dispute resolution, the lawyers are also part of a team which is collectively dedicated to finding a comprehensive settlement. As a result, the parties' lawyers can be expected to behave in a much more transparent manner and work in a manner which is geared towards both parties' success.

The divorce coaches are psychologists and counsellors. They help guide their clients through the emotional turbulence of the breakdown of their relationship, and assist each party in maintaining a relatively objective view of the situation. They may also help their clients develop their views on the issues and held them develop more effective communication strategies.

The divorce coaches will talk to each other and to the lawyers during the collaborative process, and share their respective clients' experiences and concerns. The divorce coaches may also work together, sometimes in joint sessions with the parties, to develop strategies and solutions for the benefit of everyone.

This financial advisor is a neutral party in the process, someone without any loyalty to either party, who is able to look at things objectively and impartially. His or her job is to present options to help the parties deal with the financial aspects of their relationship and their short- and long-term needs.

This child specialist is another neutral. His or her job is to represent the interests of the children, without any duty of loyalty to either parent. While all of the team members are of course concerned about the best interests of the children, the purposes of the child specialist are to ensure that the children remain a primary concern, help the parties develop a proper parenting plan, and identify and address issues regarding the children's future care.

==Further Reading in this Chapter==

* <span style="color: red;">Arbitration</span>

* <span style="color: red;">Parenting Coordination</span>

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