Collaborative Law

Let the attorneys and licensed mediators at the Bob Leonard Law Group, P.L.L.C. help you communicate effectively and find a solution to your divorce dispute.

The advantages of a collaborative approach include:

•  Child focused: Reduce the trauma of divorce on children.
•  Solution-oriented: Negotiate win-win trade-offs that suit your needs.
•  Cooperative approach: Work with your former spouse to resolve matters.
•  Greater control over outcomes: You decide the outcome, not a judge.

What is collaborative law?

The conventional process of divorce can drive the parties—already separated from each other—even farther apart. It takes a toll on individual dignity. Often, tragically, children suffer the most. Collaborative law presents a more humane and respectful choice, which lessens the trauma for children of divorcing individuals.

It is a process in which the parties and their counsel agree in writing to make a good faith attempt to reach a mutually-agreeable settlement without court intervention. Working together, they craft a way to dissolve their marriage in a way that considers everyone's needs and minimizes conflict. The parties are in control, rather than the legal system. There is a statute in the Texas Family Code specifically providing for collaborative law.

How does collaborative divorce work?

Collaborative law is a solution-oriented alternative to traditional divorce. Instead of the typical brutal battle, divisiveness that focuses on getting the largest financial reward—no matter the human cost—the parties try to find more cooperative and mature win-win solutions that meet the needs of both sides. That many individuals are dissatisfied with traditional divorce is commonly known.

All participants agree to work together respectfully, honestly, and in good faith. No one may go to court, or even threaten to do so, as long as they are in the collaborative process. In the unlikely event that a party feels that court is a better alternative, the collaborative law process terminates and both spouses must hire new lawyers to take their case to court.

Each professional on the collaborative law team owes a primary allegiance and duty to their own clients. But they also know that the way to serve the highest interests of their clients is to act with integrity in the spirit of cooperation and mutual respect.

While a marriage may be ending, the collaborative law process recognizes that relationships and obligations often continue—especially when children are involved. It allows spouses to formulate an agreement that focuses on their most important individual and mutual goals. This process helps all family members move forward in a positive way, rather than as adversaries dwelling on the past.

For more information about collaborative divorce, please contact us. Our firm can provide collaborative law services.

For general information, you may also visit the website of the Collaborative Law Institute of Texas: https://www.collablawtexas.com/index.cfm

Serving Forth Worth, Texas and the surrounding
Tarrant, Denton, Parker, Hood, Ellis, Johnson, and Dallas Counties.