Elizabeth Swarbrick

Throughout my professional life I have worked to improve the way families deal with disputes and transitions. I have confined my family law practice to collaborative law and mediation because I strongly believe that an adversarial approach to divorce is the worst way for families to restructure. I am especially concerned with the effect on children of the anger and animosity that a bitter divorce can create, and believe that collaborative law offers an alternative that can lead to healing and future cooperation.

By listening to the issues that families face and understanding what each party needs to move beyond the divorce, this no-court approach makes that goal a reality. As a family law lawyer since 1995, I know how difficult divorce can be from emotional, financial and legal perspectives. I am committed to guiding clients through this process in an efficient and amicable way as possible. My focus is to help clients identify and work towards their goals while keeping them in control of their outcomes. My passion for this process led me to be a founding member of the Ottawa Collaborative Practice group and the Lanark County Collaborative Practice group, of which I am a past president. My belief that this process can help many couples has also taken me into the area of training other lawyers, mental health professionals and financial professionals all over Ontario on this approach.