What is a collaborative dispute resolution procedure?
Texaswas the first state to enact a collaborative law statute in 2001. The statutory collaborative law procedure involves the parties’ and their counsel’s agreement in writing to use their best efforts and make a good faith attempt to resolve their divorce on an agreed basis without resorting to judicial intervention except to have the court approve the settlement agreement, make the legal pronouncements, and sign the orders required by law to effectuate the agreement of the parties as the court determines appropriate. The parties’ counsel may not serve as litigation counsel except to ask the court to approve the settlement agreement. In the statutory collaborative process, the parties’ written agreement sets out how the parties and their lawyers will proceed in negotiating the terms of the divorce settlement, including issues concerning the children and property division. If the parties cannot come to agreements through the collaborative process, either party may declare an impasse. B
