Collaborative Practice’s Radical Possibilities for the Legal Profession: '[Two Lawyers and Two Clients] for the Situation'

Abstract

Collaborative Practice (CP) significantly changes the way that legal disputes are resolved from beginning to end. CP is a dramatic shift from the way law is generally practiced today in the United States and it has the potential to transform that practice. Cochran considers the two dramatic changes that CP brings to law practice: a change in the mental attitude of lawyers and clients toward the conflict and a change in lawyers’ counseling techniques. Part Two of the article defines CP and compares it to traditional negotiation-pending-litigation (NPL). Part Three considers the change in attorney and client mental attitudes wrought by CP, where both lawyers and clients take responsibility for identifying a resolution that will meet the needs of all of the parties. Part Four considers the type of client-counseling that is often generated by CP - lawyers in CP may strongly encourage clients to find a resolution that meets the needs of all of the parties. Cochran concludes with a consideration of the possible future of CP.