A New Way to Divorce, Collaboratively

Raleigh, NC- The largest divorce firm on the East Coast, Rosen Law Firm, says more and more of its clients are resorting to collaborative divorce. Collaborative divorce made its way to North Carolina in 2003 and has been gaining popularity ever since.

As of 2004 there were 35 states that offered collaborative divorce, a process created over a decade ago by Stuart G. Webb, a Minnesota family attorney.

“Collaborative divorce really gives people control over their destiny”, says Lee Rosen, president of Rosen Law Firm and divorce attorney for twenty years. “This approach encourages a more peaceful resolution to marital conflict where people maintain very amicable relationships throughout the process and the threat of court isn’t there”.

Collaborative divorce is different from dispute resolution, mediation, or arbitration. When a collaborative divorce takes place a set of voluntary ground rules are agreed upon. The central idea is that the parties hire lawyers who agree in advance not to take the case to trial.

In a collaborative divorce procedure, if a case cannot be settled and the parties decide to litigate, both must hire new attorneys, as outlined by the collaborative divorce rules. Also, both parties’ lawyers must be trained in collaborative divorce law for the process to work.

“We are so committed to this cooperative approach that we’ve not only trained every one of our attorneys in collaborative divorce law, we’ve also provided free training to attorneys in several other firms”, says Rosen.

Like mediation and arbitration, collaborative law attempts to maintain a civil relationship throughout the negotiation process, as well as after an agreement is reached. If either party becomes stuck on a particular issue, a mediator may be consulted to help with the collaborative process.

With offices in Raleigh, Charlotte, and now Chapel Hill/Durham, Rosen Law Firm is the largest divorce firm on the East Coast. Founded in 1990, the firm is dedicated to providing individual growth and support to couples seeking divorce by helping them move forward with their lives. Our staff of attorneys, accountants, and specially trained divorce coaches expertly address the complex issues of ending a marriage. Our innovative approach acknowledges that divorce is so much more than just a legal matter. Practice areas include child custody, alimony, property distribution, separation agreements, and domestic violence relief.