Me Van den Bossche is a lawyer trained in collaborative law, who adheres to the Charter of collaborative family law, and is registered in this respect on the list of lawyers approved by the association.
Collaborative law is a new, alternative method for resolving disputes.
Today, more and more people involved in court cases expect a solution from their counsel which meets their needs and their interests, rather than an argument and confrontation between different positions before the courts, with the risk of having unsuitable solutions being imposed upon them by a judge.
To respond to this expectation, new alternative methods for resolving disputes have emerged.
Developed firstly in the United States, this then spread to Canada and then finally reached Europe.
The Family Law Committee of the Ordre français des avocats [French Bar Association] for the Brussels Bar has therefore endeavoured to develop Collaborative Law.
Collaborative law is defined as a voluntary and confidential process for the settlement of disputes through negotiation. This process is extremely suited to the practice of the lawyer: it has been created by lawyers, for lawyers and their clients.
The collaborative lawyer receives from his or her client an exclusive mandate and and is restricted to assist and advise him or her, with the sole aim of reaching a common ground. The cornerstone of the process lies in the role of the collaborative lawyer. The latter undertakes to advise his or her client with the sole perspective of searching for a negotiated solution.
In the event that the process fails, the lawyers consulted can no longer continue with their intervention, and from then on cannot provide a defence of the interests of their clients within the context of litigation proceedings.
Coming to an agreement is therefore the sole mission of collaborative lawyers which means that they must withdraw in the event that negotiations fail.
Collaborative law in addition allows for no litigation procedure : it in fact assumes that there shall be no aggressive procedure (or that the one in progress is suspended but also that there is no threat of resorting to the procedure or of any unilateral aggressive measure.
In addition, there are several principles underlying this process including: the work of a team of lawyers, the highlighting of the interests and needs of both parties and the children , the exchange of information in good faith, privacy , the implementation of effective communication rules, etc. Collaborative law is a process that involves the implementation of several well-defined steps.
At each stage of the process, the parties are encouraged to participate actively and to express their needs and respective interests, as well as to listen to those from the other party. The lawyers moderate and guarantee both the process and the legality of the agreements which will emerge.
Collaborative lawyers will therefore help you within family law to:
Only lawyers who are trained in collaborative law and who adhere to the Collaborative Family Law Charter of the Brussels Bar Association can claim to practise collaborative law.
