This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.
When you and the other side agree to try collaborative law, you can also agree on how private your conversations during that process will stay. This rule says that whatever you and the other party decide about confidentiality, in a signed written agreement, is what controls. Your discussions during collaborative law sessions stay private, but only to the extent you both agreed to in writing.
There's one other way privacy can be protected too. Even without a specific written agreement covering every detail, other Mississippi laws outside of these collaborative law rules might also keep certain communications confidential. So there are two paths to privacy here: what you put in writing together, or what other state laws already protect.
This matters because collaborative law only works if people feel safe being honest and open during negotiations. Knowing your words won't automatically become public record, or get used against you later, encourages real problem solving instead of guarded posturing. But the protection isn't automatic or unlimited. It depends on what you actually agreed to in writing, so it's worth taking time to spell out clearly what should stay confidential before you start the process.
