Collaborative law is another alternative method for dealing with divorcing couples in Ohio, and it’s a way to streamline the case load of the courts.
This interesting alternative was first launched in Minnesota by an attorney in the early 1990s. The key element of collaborative law is that it needs a formal commitment from both of the parties involved in a divorce to find a resolution to their differences cooperatively rather than pursue litigation. In Minnesota, this practice is actually included in the General Rules of Practice.
The attorney who started this move to an alternative method of settling disputes, Stewart Webb, came up with the idea because he was totally frustrated with the way the courts were handling such cases. Traditional litigation wasn’t solving the root cause of the problems, court costs were escalating and the courts were being backed up with cases that had the potential to be solved another way; collaborative law. This approach will actually be enshrined in Minnesota law as the Uniform Collaborative Law Act. While this is still not a reality, in actual fact, the practice of collaborative law has been making its presence felt across the nation, and even in Ohio.
The beauty of this particular approach is that it standardizes the most essential/core features of the total process. It eases the crushing burden on the court system and in this recession, reduces the overall cost of obtaining a divorce, while still protecting both spouses involved in the process. It allows couples at war with each other to find a way to resolve their differences and get a settlement without spending a large sum of money on hostile litigation.
Although this form of law is practiced in Ohio, there are still some concerns relating to confidentiality; the same type of confidentiality that mediators are used to having. Collaborative attorneys don’t have this aspect formally in place for their endeavors. This evidently is something that has yet to be worked out. In reality, Ohio divorce lawyers who use the collaborative approach maintain client confidentiality and keep the resolution process in confidence as well. The whole process is an open door to very blunt and honest conversations in order to resolve underlying disputes standing in the way of an equitable divorce.
If the contentious issues are settled in a collaborative manner, the whole case is kept out of court. However, if a divorce case does fail in the collaborative process both lawyers for the parties are required to withdraw as the case would then proceed to litigation. As you may well imagine, having to find and retain two new attorneys to litigate the divorce would cost the couple time and a lot of money.
Prior to either party entering into the collaborative divorce process, each has to be fully informed about what it means and the possible consequences if the discussions fail. This means attorneys who offer this kind of alternative service need to educate their clients on how it works and also make an assessment as to whether or not the case would fit within the parameters of collaborative law guidelines. In other words, if the parties can’t find it within themselves to talk openly to each other, collaborative law won’t work.
The really interesting thing about this new approach to solving legal matters is that it is currently being used for employment disputes, some medical malpractice cases and probate matters. When you are faced with a divorce and want to know what your options are in Ohio, ask about the collaborative law process and find out if your attorney thinks your case may be a good candidate for resolution by this route.
Jeremiah Denslow is a Dayton Divorce Lawyer in Dayton Ohio with Denslow Law Firm. The firm specializes in family law. Jeremiah also practices Dayton criminal defense. To learn more about Dayton divorce lawyer, Dayton dui lawyer, Dayton defense lawyer, Dayton divorce attorney, Dayton dui attorney, Dayton defense attorney, Dayton attorney, Dayton lawyer, Dayton ohio, visit Denslowlaw.com.
