What is the Divorce Mediation Process?

Many couples who want to separate or divorce can now avoid protracted, divisive and costly Court proceedings. They can choose a faster, cheaper and less traumatic way, they can choose mediation.

What Is Mediation?

Mediation is not meditation or conciliation. It is a process by which couples are able to resolve property, financial and family issues in private and reach a mutually acceptable negotiated settlement. A mediator is the skilled and neutral person who keeps the couple to come to a joint understanding of the issues and to fashion a solution which for their particular circumstances may be better than any solution imposed by a Court.

What Issues Does Mediation Cover?

There are normally a range of decisions that should be made following separation or divorce. These may include arrangements for the children, housing, finance and property matters. When couples separate and they have children their children need a continuing interest and involvement of both parents in their lives. Many parents find mediation helpful when arriving at decisions about the future of their family.

How Final Is Mediation?

Provided both parties have disclosed all relevant facts during the mediation and nothing is clearly unfair or contrary to the interests of the children, resolution of family, property and financial issues culminates in the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement. The Memorandum of Agreement can be incorporated into the Consent Order without the need for a Court appearance. What Are The Risks?

If a couple are unable to reach agreement on one or more of the issues at the end of a mediation session they simply walk away. The parties still have the choice of issuing proceedings in the Court. Mediation however allows couples to retain control over their problems and the resolution of them.

How Long Are Mediation Sessions?

Meetings last no longer than 90 minutes. The number of meetings will depend on the number and nature of issues to be resolved.

How Much Will It Cost?

Using a mediator to facilitate negotiations reduces the costs of divorce substantially. If matters become protracted and the matter proceeds to a final hearing the costs of litigation in an average matter can soon reach £10,000.00 for each party. The cost for each party amounts to £95 per hour per person.

Summary. If you are considering a divorce, mediation is a process which can save you a considerable amount of stress and hardship during the process. It should be considered early on in the divorce process to give it the best prospects of success.

Copyright (c) 2010 Gary Storer

Divorce Mediation Vs Divorce Litigation

The benefits to divorce mediation, as an alternative to litigation, are many. First and foremost, mediation helps prevent your family from being torn apart in the process of divorce.

Just because you and your spouse have decided to divorce doesn't mean that you have to go to war, yet litigation, by its very nature, is designed to be an adversarial process. You hire a divorce attorney, your spouse hires an attorney, and suddenly you have lawyers on the clock, involved in and billing for every single issue - major and minor. Inadvertently, you find yourself fighting about issues that could have been easily settled through mediation, and you've lost control of the process.

Mediation, on the other hand, is a process of peaceful communications, whereby you and your spouse express what you want during facilitated meetings, listen to each other, and come to agreements. These agreements can be about parenting time, money, personal items, spousal support, division of property, child care arrangements, and anything else that needs to be resolved. These agreements are written up as a "Memorandums of Understanding," and they're filed with the courts as part of your divorce.

The benefits to mediation are both financial and emotional, including:
oThe average cost of divorce mediation is $1,200-$5,000, including all filing fees, whereas the average cost of divorce litigation in the state of Colorado runs between $25,000-$50,000 for a low-conflict divorce.

oThe average timeframe for divorce mediation, from the filing of court forms and the initial mediation consultation to finalization of the divorce runs three to six months, whereas a litigated divorce is typically drawn out for twelve to eighteen months.

oDivorce mediation is much easier than divorce litigation, because agreements can be reached quickly and simply, between you and your spouse, without having to go to court at every turn. There are less scheduling conflicts along the way, and no expensive delays.

oThe outcomes in divorce mediation are more predictable than in litigation. You know what you're agreeing to, on every point, with every Memorandum of Understanding that's drawn up. You're not turning over your fate to the whims of a judge, hoping for the best.

oThroughout the entire process of divorce mediation, your thoughts, opinions, and views will be heard, and you'll have time to express yourself during each negotiation. That's not possible with divorce litigation, when you're given limited time to testify. Because the courts are overcrowded, underfunded, and understaffed, most judges and magistrates are forced to move cases through the system with a limited amount of attention give to each one. In other cases, judges delay decisions for months after trials, which could lead to additional stress and anxiety for you.

oWith divorce mediation, you're able to make sound, well-thought-out decisions. Unlike litigation, you'll never be asked to make a life-changing decision in just minutes, in the crowded halls of a courthouse, on one of the most stressful days of your life.

oDivorce mediation protects your privacy, whereas in litigated divorce cases, there's no confidentiality. All court files become public records, some of which are available online. Every intimate detail of your marriage, finances, children's lives, and more potentially can be accessed.

oDivorce mediation is less stressful than litigation, which by its nature is combative. When children are involved, the importance of healthy, ongoing communications between you and your spouse becomes even more vital.

oDuring mediation, you set your own schedule for conferences and meetings, and you're not forced to rely on open court dates and attorney availability.

oMediation offers you the flexibility to try out of some the agreements you reach with your spouse, giving you the time and space to determine if they'll work before you sign the final divorce agreement.

Why not try divorce mediation? If, for some reason, you and your spouse can't resolve your differences and come to the fair agreements you need through mediation, you always have the option of retaining an attorney and litigating your case.

For more information on the advantages of divorce mediation, please call us at (303) 345-3333, or e-mail info@divorcemediationdenverco.com.