A better break-up
Basingstoke firms offer service for better break ups
Couples in and around Basingstoke who intend to separate or divorce can now take advantage of a new service which will help them settle out of court. It’s called collaborative law and it’s a new approach built upon mutual problem solving, where both parties and their lawyers pledge to work together to negotiate an agreement without going through a costly court case.
Local law firms have joined together to ensure that couples have the best possible chance of an amicable parting and a brighter future. The new scheme aims to offer a lower cost, less painful divorce that helps couples focus on rebuilding the future. The aim is to keep divorce and separation cases out of court and make the process quicker, cheaper and more amicable. In the process the couple, each represented by specially trained lawyers agree in writing to reach a settlement out of court in a series of meetings.
The firms participating in the new Collaborative Law approach are Lamb Brooks solicitors (Ann Davies and Hannah Arran), Phillips Solicitors (Ann Corrigan), Brain Chase Coles solicitors (Nick Massey-Chase), Quality Solicitors Clarke & Son (Buphendra Sankhla) and Rowberry Morris solicitors (Julie Gallimore). Details of the scheme can be found on the group’s website www.betterdivorce.co.uk. Ann Davies of Lamb Brooks explained how it can be a godsend to divorcing couples, particularly those with children: “Collaborative law operates on the idea that every family going through a divorce has its own different needs. It then takes the best of what’s out there and offers it to them. By all sitting down together, we ensure that couples stay in control of their own futures, instead of leaving decisions to a judge in a courtroom. From a solicitor’s point of view, there’s an element of working in the best way we can – not compromising - but being tough on an issue yet being on the side of the people. For the family it can mean helpful advice and support, without the long, drawn-out and often painful recriminations involved in a court case.’
Ann Corrigan of Philips solicitors explains: ‘This is not a soft option, it helps you to see both sides as we work together towards an agreement, but the difference is you are in control, it’s your process, and we are focussed on solutions rather than confrontation. Collaborative lawyers put your problem in the centre of the table and use our combined knowledge and experience to help you resolve your difficulties.’
Sadly, family breakdown is a fact of life, but where this national initiative has been practised elsewhere in the UK, it has achieved remarkable results. Now couples in Basingstoke and Hampshire have the chance to use it.
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SPLIT STATISTICS In 2009 the divorce rate in England and Wales fell to 10.5 divorcing people per thousand married population compared with the 2008 figure of 11.2, a fall of 6.3 per cent. The divorce rate is at its lowest level since 1977 when there were 10.3 divorcing people per thousand married population. For the fifth consecutive year, men and women in their late twenties had the highest divorce rates of all age groups. Since 1999 the average age at divorce in England and Wales has risen from 40.9 to 44.0 years for men and from 38.4 to 41.5 years for women, partly reflecting the rise in age at marriage. One in five men and women divorcing in 2009 had a previous marriage ending in divorce. This proportion has doubled since 1980 when 10 per cent of men and women divorcing had a previous marriage ending in divorce. In 2009 70 per cent of divorces were to couples where the marriage was the first for both parties. |
About Julie Gallimore
Julie qualified as a solicitor in 1996. She has worked in the law for over 25 years and exclusively in the field of Family Law for the past 18. Julie joined Rowberry Morris in 2000 and is a partner. Julie specialises in all aspects of family law, including divorce, ancillary relief, civil partnership cases and disputes concerning children. As well as being a member of Resolution. Julie is a Resolution Accredited Specialist in disputes concerning substantial assets and/or pensions and is also a member of the Law Society’s specialist Family Law Panel. Julie is a trained Collaborative Lawyer and a member of the Berkshire West Collaborative Family Law Group (www.betterdivorce.co.uk).
Rowberry Morris solicitors, Sherfield House, Mulfords Hill, Tadley, RG26 3XJ
0118 981 2992; www.rowberrymorris.co.uk; jgallimore@rmtadley.co
