What is collaborative dispute resolution?

Collaborative dispute resolution or collaborative law, as it is often termed, is currently being used successfully and efficiently in family law matters across Canada. The Alberta Collaborative Resolution Association (“ACRA”) is a Federal not-for-profit association that was created to promote the use of collaborative law for civil and commercial disputes. Civil and commercial disputes encompasses a wide variety of legal matters including conflicts related to employment, contracts, shareholders, wills and estates and all other disputes outside of family or criminal law.

The practice of using collaborative law principles in non-family disputes is gaining ground worldwide. There are various civil collaborative law groups operating in the United States.

Collaborative law has a number of characteristics that make it distinct from other forms of dispute resolution:

  • The choice to proceed with a collaborative approach is typically made at the outset of a matter before a great deal of time and legal expense is undertaken;

  • Collaborative law consists of a series of four-way meetings between the parties and their collaborative lawyers, along with any other professionals (financial, mental health, etc.) that may add value to a potential resolution. The four-way meetings proceed in an orderly and structured fashion where concerns, interests and possible solutions are discussed. Ultimately, if successful, a settlement agreement is negotiated;

  • The disputing parties sign a Participation Agreement with their chosen collaborative lawyers. The Participation Agreement sets out how the parties will approach the process and issue; this includes participating in good faith, working towards a mutually agreeable solution, expectations of confidentiality, document disclosure and the role of counsel; and

  • A defining feature of the collaborative approach is that if the parties cannot settle the matter after a series of four-way, interest based meetings, the chosen collaborative lawyers must resign from the file and cannot continue to litigate the matter. This encourages full and frank disclosure and discussion during the process.

Is collaborative dispute resolution a good idea for my dispute?

We suggest you reach out to one of the lawyers on our Professional Members Roster to canvass the advantages and disadvantages to proceeding with a collaborative approach, as opposed to a more traditional manner. Our Professional Members are active and practicing lawyers who are called to the Alberta Bar. Please note that at this time, our Professional Members are focused on civil and commercial disputes, not family law matters.

Who is providing collaborative dispute resolution services for civil and commercial matters?

ACRA was formed to act as a roster association for Alberta legal professionals interested in becoming trained in collaborative law and providing collaborative law services to members of the public. ACRA acts as a central place for collaborative law education, training, resources, marketing and networking in Alberta in respect of civil and commercial legal matters. At this time, ACRA is not focused on family law collaborative dispute resolution. There are many active collaborative family lawyers in Alberta and we suggest you undertake your own research if it is a family law matter for which you need assistance.

The mission of ACRA is:

—To promote collaborative dispute resolution;

—To maintain and make available a roster of trained professionals to provide collaborative dispute resolutions services to interested members of the public;

—To promote training in collaborative dispute resolution by Professional Members and enforce compliance with that training in a manner that is fair, transparent and principled;

— To create and promote membership for individuals interested in the collaborative dispute resolution process but not interested in providing such services directly to end clients;

— To educate the public about collaborative dispute resolution as an effective means of dispute resolution; and

— To provide Professional and Associate Members with resources, training and/or access to training in the collaborative dispute resolution area.

Where can I learn more?

If you are interested in becoming a member of ACRA, please see our Membership page.

If you are a member of the public looking to utilize a collaborative law approach to your civil or commercial dispute, feel free to reach out to any member of the Professional Members Roster or email info@albertacollaborative.ca and we can direct your inquiry to an appropriate person.