Along with Governor Chris Christie’s recent passage of the alimony reform bill, which we previously blogged about, the Governor also recently signed into law the New Jersey Family Collaborative Law Act. Collaborative law is a type of dispute resolution where the parties try to resolve their differences in a non-adversarial setting, without court intervention. One unique feature of collaborative law is that if the collaborative process doesn’t yield an agreement between the parties, and the parties choose to go forward with litigation, each party’s attorney must withdraw from representing their client. In addition, like most forms of dispute resolution, all communications within the collaborative law setting are confidential.
In order for the collaborative process to be completed, the new law says that the parties must sign a settlement agreement, or terminate the process in a number of other ways. These methods of termination include notification that one party wishes to end the process; a party files a document with the court, bringing the parties’ issues before a judge; either party obtains a restraining order against the other; one party terminates his or her relationship with his or her lawyer; or one party fails to comply with the collaborative process.
Collaborative law, along with arbitration and mediation, can be important tools for parties who wish to resolve a legal dispute without the time and cost of litigation. However, the various forms of alternative dispute resolution may not work for everyone, particularly those individuals who cannot work together amicably.
If you are going through a divorce, or will be in the near future, and are considering engaging in a form of alternative dispute resolution, the experienced attorneys at Sarno da Costa D’Aniello Maceri LLC can help you. Our firm not only offers mediation services, but our attorneys have assisted clients in numerous processes of collaborative law, arbitration, and mediation. Call us today at 973-274-5200 for help with your case.
