15 November 2007

The less stress answer to divorce

Surveys have shown that relationships that are already in trouble are more likely to falter during the Christmas period, with 57% of those surveyed saying said that the break had an effect on their decision to separate. This is borne out by the fact that January to March is traditionally the busiest period of the year for divorce petitions being filed.

With an estimated one in three UK marriages ending in the divorce court, the process for many can be long-winded, costly, stressful and full of conflict. Collaborative family law is a relatively recent process, devised to take the heat out of divorce and separation. It is an alternative to the traditional divorce process, which avoids going to court and uses mediation to minimise conflict. It helps achieve positive solutions to family disputes, enabling couples and families to move forward, with their dignity and respect intact.

The Bristol members of the national Collaborative Family Lawyers Group met recently to explain the collaborative process of family dispute resolution. Philip Simon, a family law partner at the Staple Hill office of Wards (and a trained collaborative lawyer) says: “Clients we work with say that the collaborative process provides three significant benefits: it is a private process, its less contentious than going to court and therefore less anxiety-ridden and the outcome is often fairer for both parties”.

For more information on the collaborative process, click here.

To find a trained collaborative family lawyer, visit www.collaborativefamilylawyers.co.uk and search a list of local practitioners or contact:

Philip Simon: 0117 943 4800 philip.simon@wards.uk.com