Civil Practice

Civil disputes are particularly well-suited to resolution through the Collaborative Law process. While almost all court cases settle, civil disagreements, (such as business disputes, workplace and employment disputes, landlord-tenant matters, and probate contests)* need not begin in the court system, as they do not require a court-mandated resolution. The Civil Resolution Section is committed to the intentional pursuit of settlement of business disputes as the positive, beneficial outcome of legal representation through Collaborative Law.

Collaborative Law works to:

Reduce Costs, minimizing open-ended litigation expenses.
Empower the Clients who control and participate fully in crafting the result.
Address Time Constraints at the speed of business.
Keep it Private, maintaining confidentiality.
Preserve or Enhance Relationships by mending fences, rather than burning bridges.
Reduce Stress, Distraction and Lost Opportunity Costs: shrinking soft, but very real costs of a business dispute.
Achieve the Best Possible Outcomes with "win-win" and "out-of-the-box" solutions.

The Collaborative Law process is appropriate for most disputes. The following list suggests many possible applications:

Contracts between suppliers and customers
Family- and closely-owned businesses
Professional practice break-ups
Estate contests
Insurance disputes
Intellectual property disputes
Real estate disputes in construction, development, finance, landlord/tenant, Permitting, Boundary Lines
Workplace and Employment problems
Securities disputes
Business tort cases
Environmental law
Financial services
Transportation industry
Special Education
Professional liability matters (malpractice in medicine, law, psychiatry, accounting, architecture, engineering and consulting)

The list is endless. Collaborative Law as a powerful, positive approach to dispute resolution that leaves behind the tired old litigious, lose-lose conventions. It's better for both the parties involved and for society in general!

Our experience with Collaborative Law was a very pleasant surprise; I would recommend it as a first step to dispute resolution. It worked for us because we were committed to the Collaborative Law process. Our attorneys acted as facilitators to keep the process moving and to iron out the differences among the parties. The process was almost painless; even with a few bumps along the away. In the end, all of us walked away from the process feeling like everyone was treated fairly and all parties were satisfied with the outcome. Collaborative Law also preserved the company’s capital, so we could build two strong companies from the one we all started.