Developmental negotiation involves a plan and execution of the development of all five stages to maximize the likelihood of a beneficial outcome. The five stages are preliminary, preparation, information, negotiation and closing.

Let’s take a closer look at the first stage, preliminary. In real time, your client has met with you and has been signed up, and you are considering approaches. When signing the client, you developed a thorough understanding of the client’s needs, interests and capacity for risk, both financially and emotionally. Now you have initial decisions and recommendations to make.

Originally published on Law.com on July 20, 2014.