Minnesota Collaborative Divorce Attorneys Helping Clients Find Respectful And Dignified Solutions
Last updated on September 26, 2024
Despite how it is portrayed in popular culture, divorce doesn’t need to be a battle. In fact, fiercely litigated divorce often results in worse outcomes, greater expenses and more collateral damage. Thankfully, there are better ways to resolve family law disputes.
Our attorneys at Frago & Lasswell, P.A., are strong proponents of resolving your legal issues out of court using methods like collaborative law, early neutral evaluation and mediated divorce. Our firm is exclusively focused on family law, and our legal team offers more than 50 years of combined experience.
How Does Collaborative Divorce Work?
Collaborative law is based on the idea that, with some legal help, couples can resolve their disputed family law issues outside of the courtroom. Each party is represented by their own attorney. At the beginning of the process, the spouses and the attorneys sign what’s known as a participation agreement, in which they pledge to be transparent and work toward a fair resolution without going to court.
Rather than litigating any issues, their attorneys, and sometimes other neutral professionals, work with the parties to resolve their issues outside of court. Once all issues have been resolved, they are formalized in a written agreement, which is presented to a judge for approval.
Collaborative Law Can Be Used To Address All Aspects Of Your Case
Our collaborative divorce attorneys use this method to help clients resolve all contested issues in their family law case, including:
- Dissolution of marriage
- Division of property, assets and debts
- Child custody and parenting plans
- Spousal maintenance (Alimony or spousal support)
When needed, our lawyers bring in neutral professionals and experts in the areas where clients need help, including financial professionals, child specialists and more.
There Are Many Benefits Of Collaborative Divorce – If It Is A Good Fit For You
Collaborative divorce offers many benefits that can make the process less stressful for you and your family. These include:
Open communication between parties: You and your spouse work together, with the support of your attorneys, to reach a mutually beneficial agreement. This can lead to a more amicable co-parenting relationship, which is especially important if you have children.
Retaining control over the outcome: Collaborative divorce empowers you to craft the agreement rather than leaving it up to a judge. This typically results in a more detailed and nuanced agreement that accurately reflects your family’s needs.
Efficiency and cost-effectiveness: Since you avoid lengthy court battles, you may save on legal fees and reduce the overall time spent on the divorce process.
It is important to note that collaborative divorce may not be suitable for everyone. If there is a history of domestic abuse (including coercive control), untreated substance abuse, or high conflict, litigation may be the best option.
If you believe collaborative divorce could be right for you, we encourage you to contact our firm to learn more about how we can help.
Discuss Your Options With An Experienced Collaborative Lawyer Today
From our office in Northfield, Frago & Lasswell serves clients throughout the surrounding areas of Minnesota, from Burnsville to Rochester and Mankato to Winona. To learn how our collaborative divorce attorneys can assist you, call us at 507-663-7998 or reach out online.