1337 St. Clair Ave.
St. Paul, MN 55105-2844
Office: (651) 698-0470
Fax: (651) 698-0169
Email
mary @sagewoman.net

What the Collaborative Law Process Might Look Like to You

1. You have a problem that involves family matters.

2. You get a referral to a professional who does collaborative work. Most often that first professional will be an attorney.

3. Or you have heard of Collaborative Law and so look for an collaborative attorney, because you understand that it can be a more efficient and humane process for resolving problems.

4. If you call me, we will talk a bit and then make an appointment. At your first appointment, we will discuss your problem and the many approaches that could be used. Not all problems are appropriate for Collaborative Law.

• If you and your partner have reached agreements and you really only want legal advice and help with the paperwork, then I would give you that advice and if the agreements still looked good, I would draft the papers for you, including a Summons & Petition or a Co-Petition, and a proposed Judgment and Decree, with all the necessary legal information and the terms of your agreement. Then, most often, I would ask you to give it to your partner and suggest that he or she sit down with an attorney for an hour or so to review the agreement and receive legal advice. (I do recommend that the partner consult a Collaborative Attorney because of their focus and training, and I will give you some names if you want me to.) Then, in Minnesota , after any changes requested by either party, we can usually get your divorce or other legal process done by mail so long as each party has an attorney or there are no minor children involved.
  
• If you and your partner think your issues are really simple and you believe you have equal bargaining power and can reach a fair agreement with just the help of one person to help with process, I would refer you to a mediator, or two joint mediators. Good mediators always tell their clients to consult an attorney, but the process may be less expensive if agreements are reached in mediation.
  
• The two examples above involve respectful cooperative partners; they are at one end of a continuum; here is an example of the other end: You come to me and tell me that there is abuse and/or alcoholism and/or drug abuse in the relationship and/or mental health problems, and that you are not able to work together to resolve issues. In this case, we need to first talk about safety for you and your children and then see how we can settle disputes in the least adversarial way, but many of these cases do end up in courtrooms. One alternative we might discuss are mediation with each client and his/her attorney in a separate room and the mediators going back and forth between them. I might also still suggest that we try to agree on using one child specialist to make recommendations about the children and/or a financial professional to help with financial issues, but typically the two partners would meet separately with these people.

5. Assume that your case falls in the middle of the continuum; you and your partner may be angry with each other and/or hurt, but you both want to resolve your issues humanely and efficiently with respect. Then I would describe the collaborative process to you in more detail. If you were interested, I would give you documents including a copy of the standard Participation Agreement, Ground Rules, and a letter to your partner describing your wish to pursue a collaborative process. If you request it, I might also give you some names of collaborative attorneys for your partner to all.

6. Next, the attorney hired by your partner would call me , and we would discuss the issues and possible "hot topics" would schedule the first four-way conference. (This may involve people if coaches or other professionals are involved).

7. You and I would then prepare for the first meeting by discussing your immediate issues, concerns, and your short-term and long-term goals and gathering some basic financial documents. I might suggest ways to take a break if things get hot, and I will definitely remind you that I will be there to support you and the process, and help generate alternative solutions, but the best results are achieved when you are negotiating with your partner.

8. At the first meeting, we will review and sign the Participation Agreement and a Joint Petition , and discuss Ground Rules, the process, and urgent issues. These four-way conferences typically alternate between attorneys offices and typically last two hours. Before we finish, we want to decide on "homework" (which is often getting documents together) and set a time and agenda for the next meeting. The timing of the next meeting may depend on you and your partner seeing a child or financial specialist, having the house appraised, or other things.

9. Often, it takes only three or four meetings to resolve all the issues; it can of course take more if the issues or personal dynamics are complicated . At the last meeting, we all sign the agreement, congratulate you for your participation in a positive process. It will be my hope that you and your ex- partner can be cordial to each other and, if there are children, your children will still be part of a family including both of you although there will now be two households.

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Copyright 2007, Mary Antonia Wilmes