Minneapolis Collaborative Law Attorney

Hennepin County Collaborative Divorce Lawyer: Board-Certified in Family Law

Among her other credentials, our founding member, Kathleen Newman, has formal training and lengthy experience with the collaborative law process. Collaborative divorce is quickly gaining popularity as a way to complete a divorce in relative privacy, in a spirit of cooperation, and with the possibility of less expense of time and financial resources.

If you have questions about using collaborative divorce in your own marital dissolution proceedings, consulta trained Minneapolis collaborative divorce lawyer at the law office of Kathleen Newman + Associates. Ms. Newman is Board-Certified as a Family Law Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. She has been listed as one of the Best Lawyers in America for 12 years,* consistently named a Super Lawyer by Minnesota Law & Politics Magazine,‡ and is a fellow in the prestigious American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. Contact our Minneapolis family law firm for more information.

"I have found that the majority of people who go into the collaborative divorce process with me end up settling their cases." -Attorney Kathleen Newman

What Is a Collaborative Law Divorce?

Traditional divorce proceeds via formal discovery of financial and personal information to achieve a strong negotiation stance against the other spouse. Collaborative law divorce, on the other hand, uses open disclosure between husbands and wives to reach agreed-upon compromises and resolution of contentious issues.

Under collaborative law guidelines, husbands and wives choose lawyers trained in collaborative divorce and then meet all together with their attorneys to collectively discuss those issues about which disagreement exists. They agree on one financial and family expert to review the family's details and provide reports and recommendations, instead of each hiring experts to "do battle" with the other spouse's experts.

At the beginning of the collaborative divorce process, both spouses sign an agreement stating that they intend to resolve all disputes without going to trial. If the collaborative law process fails, each spouse's collaborative divorce attorney must withdraw from further representation. This minimizes the likelihood of trial and encourages spouses to find acceptable compromise solutions.

What Are the Benefits of a Collaborative Law Divorce?

A collaborative law divorce may help spouses maintain a cooperative relationship — perhaps for the benefit of the children — whereas the traditional divorce process often encourages destructive and adversarial relationships.

However, because collaborative divorce requires equal participation by and cooperation between both spouses, it may not be appropriate in situations where one spouse has subjected the other to emotional or physical abuse or where one or both spouses have current problems with chemical dependency or mental illness.

Collaborative law divorces can also be less expensive than divorce trials, and they are usually less public because no public hearing will be necessary if the parties successfully create a complete divorce settlement agreement using the collaborative law process.

Consult a Trained Minneapolis Collaborative Law Lawyer

For answers to your questions about collaborative divorce, contact us online, call 612-424-9477 or call toll free 888-862-4174.

* The Best Lawyers in America 2007. Copyright 2006 by Woodward/White, Inc., Aiken, SC.

‡ Law & Politics polls, researches, and selects Super Lawyers through a peer recognition and professional achievement process. Only 5 percent of the lawyers in each state or region are named in Super Lawyers.