I am not so sure that I am greatly surprised that collaborative divorce might have a high price tag. Thanks to Florida Divorce * Child Custody * Domestic Violence Law Lawyer for leading me to this letter to The Toronto Star - Collaborative divorce not cheap:
"Collaborative divorce is a translation for making lots of money. I was advised that the process would cost anywhere from $4,000 to $8,000. After almost 12 months, I'm looking at more than $15,000 with no end in sight. Between the two lawyers, facilitator, financial adviser and lawyers' assistants, the money I could have put into my children's education has gone down the drain.
There is nothing about the process that is collaborative – other than how the players collaborate together to make money."
I also want to note this from Florida Divorce * Child Custody * Domestic Violence Law Lawyer's article, A Canadian Participant Rates Collaborative Divorce as … Not Cheap:
"Collaborative divorce has been enthusiastically embraced by many attorneys and other professionals serving people going through divorces.
Its primary virtues are touted as:
1. nonadversarial
2. less costly than litigation
Maybe, maybe not. It all depends on the particular case and parties."
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1 comment:
This article was very interesting to read; I have to admit to being very enthusiastic about Collaborative Law but this piece reminded me that as long as lawyers are running their practice like a business, there will always be the tendency to stimulate profits whatever the background to the practice.
I think this is where the law comes in; in matters familial, where parties are already faced with the difficulties of division of life whether financial or emotional, the law needs to protect the families in this scenario and not the 'businesses'.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with earning a living, as long as it is earned fairly. Extracting huge sums of money from already crippled families is nothing short of criminal. There needs to be a moderate approach, so that lawyers can earn a comensurate income and families can move on without being traumatised for life.
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