Effective in 2001, the Texas legislature amended the Family Code to allow for a collaborative approach to divorce. A new approach to divorce in Texas, parties and their attorneys could now enter into agreements allowing their cases to proceed utilizing collaborative law. This means that the parties and their attorneys sign a collaborative law participation agreement at the outset of negotiation, which requires that everyone engage in voluntary exchange of information and open communication. This arraignment is dissimilar to the typical divorce initiation procedures in Houston and across the State, and it can be beneficial to all parties involved.
How Collaborative Divorces Work in Texas
The law in Texas states that after the divorcing parties agree to divorce using the collaborative method, neither party can petition the court for help in negotiations unless both parties terminate their respective attorneys and retain new counsel for court. Ultimately, not having the ability to ask the court to settle negotiation disputes alters the normal contentious tone of divorces. Parties instead commit to working through their issues in meetings where settlement is the all-encompassing goal. The purpose is to have an environment that fosters honest discussion and resolution of problems associated with the marriage’s dissolution.
The Collaborative Law Process Detailed
With collaborative divorces being relatively new, many divorcing couples are unaware of the potential benefits that are available to them if they choose the collaborative method. Typically, parties can expect these four way (the divorcing parties and their attorneys) meetings to last up to two hours and occur two weeks apart. This provides the parties and their counsel adequate time to reason through proposals and prepare for subsequent meetings. In between meetings, parties work to create a plan for income, assets, liabilities and child custody arrangements. At this point, the parties and their lawyers can learn what the most important issues are in their divorce case, and how to best settle and resolve these issues with as little discord as possible. Often times, the issues facing both parties are similar, if not the same.
A Houston divorce lawyer can aid in the process of helping a party decide if a collaborative divorce is right for him or her. Largely removing the courts and instead working together can greatly increase the possibility of amicable settlement. An experienced Houston divorce attorney can help you and your spouse decide whether to engage in divorce negotiations collaboratively.
