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Mediation & Collaborative

Collaborative Family Law

Collaborative Family Law is a team approach to resolving family law issues through negotiation and not through the courts. You and your spouse each select a lawyer who is trained as a Collaborative Family Lawyer and the lawyers work cooperatively together with you and your spouse towards a settlement. Our lawyers are active members of the Collaborative Family Law Practice Groups in Halton, Peel and Hamilton regions, and will provide you with the support and guidance you need to achieve a successful resolution using the Collaborative Family Law Process.

A Team Approach

Family law involves legal, financial and emotional issues. It is important that you get the right kind of support for each type of issue. For this reason, Collaborative Family Law may include other professionals as part of the team to help provide you and your spouse with the support you need to get the best outcome possible for both of you, and for your children. A Collaborative team can include a family professional who is often a social worker who provides support to separating couples and families and assists with the parenting plan; and a financial professional who assists with gathering financial information and completing financial calculations.

Reducing Conflict & Working Towards an Agreement

The Collaborative Family Law process can help to reduce conflict in resolving family law issues so that a separating couple can work together to create a mutually acceptable agreement that is customized to their particular situation. Because you, your spouse and your lawyers have all signed an agreement not to go to court, everyone uses their energy towards finding creative and practical solutions that help to meet the goals and needs of both you and your spouse, as well as maintaining a focus on the needs of your children.

Children benefit the most when you choose Collaborative Family Law. Both lawyers in a Collaborative process will have the training they need to keep the focus on the children throughout the negotiations. No other approach to resolving family law issues provides the opportunity to incorporate the assistance of other professionals to provide help, guidance and support to both you and your spouse.

I recently had the pleasure of working with Anita Phillips on a Collaborative Law case with an excellent team. The legal work moved along efficiently, the clients were both well advised and represented by their counsel, they were offered excellent financial input from the financial professional, and they completed a Parenting Plan in one sitting. The cost of the process was kept as low as possible, the time was well spent, and the parties felt satisfied with the outcome. Excellent work.
B.A. (M.S.W and Acc.F.M.)