Beverley Morris, a Partner within the practice, is a collaborative lawyer.

If clients elect to adopt the collaborative process, as does their spouse or partner, they are agreeing to engage collaborative lawyers and sign a participation agreement. The representation of a client by a collaborative lawyer differs in some important respects from the conventional representation, which may involve litigation.

The collaborative process involves parties signing up to a participation agreement, which will involve the following:-

a)      Making every effort to find amicable solutions to satisfy clients.
b)      Being courteous and cooperative.
c)      Being truthful, open and honest, and giving full and frank disclosure.
d)     The parties signing up and agreeing not to issue legal proceedings, but to use the collaborative process to find a solution.

The Development of Collaborative Law in the UK

The concept of collaborative law first started in Minnesota, USA, with a lawyer who thought there must be a better way of resolving family disputes other than going to court. In England, in 2003, the first training course took place to train lawyers here in the collaborative process. It has progressed and developed from there.

If you are interested in considering collaborative law, please contact Miss Beverley Morris.