Carol Bailey
Attorney  Carol Bailey, the founder of the law firm and Integrative Family Law, has been in private practice in Seattle since 1991. Before that, in 1979, she was licensed to practice law in Texas, which is a community property state like Washington. She brings a unique perspective to the practice of family law. For a decade her practice was serving as a Guardian ad Litem in complex divorce and family law cases. A Guardian ad Litem is a professional whose job it is to represent the best interests of children. The Guardian ad Litem is appointed by the court and serves the court in a fiduciary capacity.
Prior to immersion in children’s issues, Carol practiced law in Seattle as a general family law attorney representing clients with complex estates and child custody issues. She has handled a range of family law cases from medium size through complex, very large estates. Our approach and philosophy strongly supports our clients' financial interests by developing the relevant facts, without using overly aggressive and inflammatory tactics that serve only to promote conflict and increase legal fees.
In addition to this experience, Carol is trained as a mediator, most recently attending the University of Washington Law School Foundation training in 2005. She also offers Facilitative Divorce Mediation and is trained in the practice of Collaborative Law. Carol speaks Spanish and French. She is a member of the Washington State Bar Association, King County Bar Association, American Bar Association, International Academy of Collaborative Professionals and the Washington Collaborative Law group. Carol was recently elected to the Women's Leadership Board of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. Carol frequently speaks at seminars and CLEs regarding family law.
Having studied at very close range over an extended period of time the nature of conflict in general, and the long-term impact of divorce and conflict on children and families in particular, she brings a unique perspective to the role of the legal professional in resolving transitions and difficulties in relationships. Carol and her associates spend time with their clients to determine what outcome meets the client’s highest expectations. In this way, the client’s values drive the legal strategy, rather than the more common occurrence of the legal strategy used by the attorney driving the outcome of the clients’ life, often with unfortunate consequences the client would never have chosen. Carol's practice is dedicated to providing exceptional legal understanding and ability, tempered by the wisdom of experience so that her clients avoid unnecessary acrimony and are able to achieve a sense of long term well being after the legal proceedings conclude. This is the heart of practicing Integrative Family Law.
Carol has recently broadened the impact of Integrative Family Law by developing a training curriculum. The training is for attorneys, and teaches essential communication and conflict management skills. This education and skill development will support attorneys to become part of the solution for families rather than compounding the existing conflict in divorce and Family Law. Carol recently studied at Harvard University with the authors of the book Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton and Sheila Heen. Their work was developed at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. The curriculum for the Seattle University School of Law class is based in large part on the work of the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. Carol taught this curriculum at Seattle University School of Law for the first time in the fall semester, 2009. Email:
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