If You Thought Family Law Wasn't Confusing Enough Already...

Well.

How many of us have found the resolution of a family breakdown to be a complex and difficult task?

Well, if it's difficult with two people - imagine the parameters of discussion and potential disagreement when the union is a union of three people.

No.

We're not talking about a a fundamentalist Mormon sect.. we're talking about an expansion of the liberal notion of "marital relationship" in Brazil, where, today, we read that a civil union was recognized between two women and a man who had already been living together, with a three-part joint bank account, for three years.

According to Public Notary Claudia do Nascimento Domingues, who confirmed the union, the man and two women should be entitled to family rights.  According to Ms. Dominques, "there is nothing in law to prevent such an arrangement."

Well.

How about that?

And what does that have to do with Collaborative Law?

Well, firstly, I suppose, should that union not work out, it may well be that a collaborative response to resolving differences might be more able to address the unique issues that the law, to this point, been required to grapple with.

But, beyond that, it reflects the reality that parties in interdependent relationships are not "cookie cutter" versions of every other relationship, and just as society is evolving to allow parties to organize their lives on THEIR OWN TERMS - perhaps, a process which is also controlled and effectively created BY THE PARTIES would be the best model to respond to difficulties or disagreement in that relationship.

Just sayin'