Boston Law Collaborative, LLC is a multidisciplinary law firm devoted to conflict resolution and the practice of collaborative law. Our goal is to save our clients time, money, and the emotional upheaval produced by litigation. Do we also go to court? Only when necessary. Many years of experience have taught us that problem-solving and effective negotiation produce better results. And with experienced professionals from the fields of law, mediation, psychology, and finance, BLC offers clients a full range of services and support. The firm carries the highest legal ability rating in Martindale-Hubbell.
BLC looks for alternatives to litigation - the legal system's traditional, adversarial method of dispute resolution. Our tools are collaborative law, mediation, arbitration, and case evaluation. Our approach is to seek common ground and find better solutions.
BLC was founded in August 2003 by David Hoffman, who was a partner at Hill & Barlow, where he served as a mediator, arbitrator, and attorney (handling family, employment, business, real estate, construction, and tort cases) for seventeen years. Rachel Goldman joined the firm as a member in 2010. Together with attorneys Vicki Shemin and Rachel Goldman, BLC has more than 100 years of family law experience. BLC's Executive Director and ADR Program Manager, attorney Israela Adah Brill-Cass, has more than fourteen years of experience in mediation and arbitration cases. All of BLC's lawyers are members of the Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council, and ten members of the BLC team are trained mediators.
In 1976, Harvard Law professor Frank Sander developed the concept of the multi-door courthouse - a place where people could opt for trial or a variety of dispute resolution processes (such as mediation and arbitration). Today BLC is applying the multi-door principle to the delivery of client services.
Helping people reach agreement is our goal. But, we are not strangers to the courtroom. If the case is not appropriate for collaborative law or mediation (learn more about suitable and unsuitable cases), a court appearance may be needed. Our clients get the information, guidance, and services they need - whether those services involve law, counseling, financial matters, or workplace advice.
