Aubrey J. Sherman, B.A., LL.B., AccFM, CODR
Managing Partner
Lawyer, Accredited Family Mediator (OAFM), & Certified Collaborative Practitioner (OACP/IACP)
Integrative Law Practitioner & Conscious Contracts® Practitioner
ODR Specialist - Certificate in Online Dispute Resolution (FDRIO)
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Connect(he/him/his)
Aubrey J. Sherman has over 17 years of practical and hands-on experience in family law and divorce dispute resolution including high-net-worth and large asset property division, financial support, parenting, high-conflict litigation, and out-of-court dispute resolution. He is a Harvard-trained negotiator and mediator, a strong communicator, and an empathetic lawyer who advocates for wholistic and integrative legal practise. Aubrey understands that court proceedings can be damaging to families and the importance of finding peaceful ways to talk about difficult issues and resolve disputes. He believes that family law matters are often best resolved outside of the courtroom, and now focuses his practise on resolving disputes through consensual dispute resolution, including collaborative divorce and mediation. He welcomes all modern families in his practise, including blended families, same-sex spouses and partners, and LGBTQ2S+.
Aubrey is frequently referred by his peers to assist families to resolve conflict and family law disputes both in and out of the courtroom. He assists clients and couples in Waterloo Region and across Ontario, including in-person and online by Zoom. He is quick to spot creative opportunities for conflict resolution and advocates for the comprehensive law movement where law can be a healing profession. |
While many lawyers will discuss the importance of protecting the assets of the client and getting the best possible outcome during initial consultations, Aubrey frequently shifts the conversation to the importance of also "listening to understand" in helping clients to gain insight, awareness, and understanding in new ways that help to resolve conflict, settle disputes, and build stronger relationships.
Aubrey works with families in transition to reduce conflict and find peaceful resolution of disputes. His professional team includes dedicated and responsive family professionals, therapists, and financial professionals. Aubrey's many years of experience helping clients and families move forward as a family in two households has allowed him to see first hand that when families are no longer in conflict, they are able to resolve disputes, find values-based solutions to their problems, and create durable agreements. He promotes a wholistic and interdisciplinary approach to family law by ensuring that his clients have the opportunity to obtain the advice of the best experts in related fields, including forensic accountants, tax specialists, financial planners, social workers, mental health professionals, and psychologists.
In Aubrey's early career, he gained substantial experience in real estate, business and corporate law, and he had the opportunity to mentor with and learn from senior family law, corporate, and estates counsel. Aubrey's diverse expertise benefits his family law clients because he understands the corporate, trust, and estates issues that often intersect in matrimonial disputes, including joint family ventures, complex business valuations, division of family run businesses, employment matters, constructive and resulting trust claims, unjust enrichment, and succession planning for corporations.
Aubrey is a fellow of the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals. He advocates for collaborative law as a better way to separate and divorce than traditional adversarial litigation. He has had the opportunity to learn at the IACP Global Virtual Institute from several preeminent authorities and international leading collaborative practitioners, including Nancy J. Ross, who is the co-founder of the Collaborative Divorce process, Pauline Tesler, lawyer/author, and Stephen Sulmeyer, lawyer/mediator and clinical psychologist.
Aubrey offers collaborative divorce and family law services for those couples seeking to resolve their family law and divorce problems outside of court in a dignified, respectful, wholistic, and non-adversarial manner through working alongside the collaborative team of legal, family, and financial professionals.
He is a proud member of Collaborative Divorce of Waterloo Region (Best4All), Collaborative Practice Hamilton Halton, and Collaborative Family Law London & Middlesex. Aubrey is available to assist couples who choose collaborative divorce and reside outside of Waterloo Region by Zoom and in-person appointments.
As an Accredited Family Mediator with the Ontario Association for Family Mediation, Aubrey combines his legal, business, and social science background to assist parties to resolve disputes. He helps clients to resolve conflict by identifying obstacles and impasses to dispute resolution. Aubrey's diverse educational background enables him to assist parties to identify and work with the underlying interpersonal obstacles that are often the barriers to conflict resolution.
Aubrey offers online and in-person mediation services as a neutral family mediator who facilitates an interest-based, insightful, and wholistic approach to dispute resolution that reduces family conflict, while at the same time generating options to resolve disputes. Aubrey mediates with clients with or without legal counsel. He also provides counsel-assisted mediation and case management for matters that are currently before the court.
Aubrey is an alumnus of the advanced mediation, conflict management, and negotiation programs at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. He is a graduate of the conflict management and mediation certificate program through the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies at Conrad Grebel University College at the University of Waterloo. Aubrey obtained certificates in dispute resolution through the ADR Institute of Ontario with a focus on conflict and negotiation theory and the mediation process. He has completed advanced family mediation training through Family Mediation Training Canada in the insight approach (Picard) and the interest-based approach (Fisher/Ury), which course content was OAFM approved and designed by Jennifer Suzor and Madam Justice L. Madsen of the Superior Court of Justice.
He is a member of the Ontario Association for Family Mediation, the Family Dispute Resolution Institute of Ontario, and the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts.
Aubrey offers collaborative divorce mediation, which is an extension of collaborative divorce that involves a neutral lawyer-mediator and a family professional who work collaboratively with the couple to get over legal, financial, and emotional hurdles in order to reach mutually acceptable agreements. This consensual dispute resolution process offers the best of collaborative divorce and mediation by combining the most successful strategies of collaborative divorce with the cost-effectiveness of mediation with outstanding success.
Aubrey is the first IACP trained collaborative lawyer-mediator in Waterloo Region to offer collaborative divorce mediation as part of his commitment to provide innovative legal options.
In his estate planning practise, Aubrey's focus goes beyond the financial capital and includes the intellectual, social, human and spiritual aspects when working with families of wealth. Once Aubrey has a clear picture of the people that are important to his clients and their goals, he works with each client to create a comprehensive estate plan that satisfies the financial and emotional goals while being purposeful and family-focused. Aubrey's focus is on transferring wealth in a way that energizes, motivates and creates opportunity for beneficiaries and avoids creating strife, anxiety, disharmony and bitterness.
Aubrey assists clients in drafting comprehensive Wills and Trusts to meet their goals, protect their legacy, and to minimize taxation and probate fees. He provides clients with succession planning advice with respect to business and corporate interests working alongside their corporate lawyer and accountant.
Aubrey advises estate trustees through the process and challenges they face in properly administering estates, and assists them in the court appointment and probate process. He also provides legal advice and guidance with executor duties and distribution of estates.
ThreeBestRated consistently recognizes Aubrey as one of the top three divorce lawyers and estate planning lawyers in the City of Kitchener. Divorce Angels also recommends Aubrey as a trusted and vetted legal professional in Waterloo Region for those going through the uncertainty of a divorce and estate matters.
Aubrey frequently writes legal commentary on family law that is featured by Divorce Angels. A list of Aubrey's blogs are available on the firm website.
Aubrey is a distinguished volunteer philanthropist who has held various leadership roles for over 25 years. He is the past recipient of the Outstanding Young Adult Volunteer Philanthropist Award from WFRE and the Community Service Award from the Kitchener-Waterloo Kinsmen Club. He has served on numerous boards and supports a variety of charitable causes.
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Areas of Practise
Education
Professional Accreditation
Professional Training
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Awards & Achievements
Professional Affiliations
Community Involvement &Speaking Engagements
Year of Call2005, Ontario
A little bit more about AubreyAubrey enjoys physical fitness, yoga, and practices mindfulness. His passion for culinary arts and gastronomy inspired him to become a talented chef who enjoys preparing great meals and entertaining for family and friends. He enjoys travelling, day trips to antique markets, and planning home and interior design projects. Aubrey is an arts enthusiast with a keen eye for fashion and design. Aubrey frequently attends the Saturday Kitchener Farmers’ Market and believes in clean eating and supporting and buying from local merchants. When not in the office, Aubrey can be found enjoying the outdoors and masterfully tending to his perennial gardens.
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