We are dispute resolution professionals first.
Mediation opens the door for each spouse to collaborate and reach solutions that may not be possible through litigation.
The Road to Mediation
1
Identify the Issues
From your perspective and from the other side’s perspective (as far as you know them), then get all the needed information to deal with those issues on the table. Nothing helps a mediation run smoother than the parties having trust that they know all the facts underlying the negotiation and what issues they are trying to solve.
2
Reflect on what you want
Have some frank discussions with your legal counsel, or your inner self if unrepresented, about your goals, your priorities, and realistic outcomes. Having these pre-mediation discussions and brainstorming sessions will better enable you to focus on looking for creative pathways to getting what you want and need instead of being distracted by trying to prioritize issues.
3
Get ready to listen.
You might be surprised to learn what is actually driving some aspects of the dispute and how clear some solutions might become once those driving forces are identified.
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-H.M., Google Review
“Arsh, Louise, and Chris handled my case with tact and professionalism. Their advice was spot on. They were instrumental in the decision for this case. Thank you so much.”
FAQs
What is Mediation?
Mediation is a consensual negotiation between the parties to a dispute facilitated by a neutral third-party: the Mediator. Mediators cannot impose solutions, but they can help people listen to each other, listen to themselves, and find the answers to their disputes. Sometimes this takes the form of old-fashioned arm twisting and head knocking, but more often it simply involves the mediator helping people talk and uncover the solutions that were there all along.
Mediation can take many forms. Everyone can be together in the same room, or there can be separate rooms with the mediator shuttling back and forth. There can be lawyers involved, or the parties can attend without their lawyers. The mediation can be in person, or it can be done remotely through computers and software.
Why Mediation instead
There are many advantages to mediation over straight litigation. The most crucial is that only through mediation can you craft a solution that works for you and your family. Mediation keeps the power in your hands. Mediated solutions can be far more creative and individual to your family’s specific needs. With litigation, the decision will ultimately be left up to a judge who will bring their own views, their potential biases, and their own experience (or lack thereof) with children and family dispute issues. It is rare for any person in a litigated family dispute to walk out of a courtroom fully satisfied with the judge’s decision. The most common litigated result in family disputes are draws leaving both sides feeling dissatisfied. Keep that power and work for a mediated solution that you choose.
What if the other side does not want to Mediate?
Often one or both sides in a dispute don’t want to mediate. They think it will be a waste of time, or the other side is being so unreasonable that there is no point. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Mediations that do not result in a settlement are extremely useful as they can help the parties start listening to each other and start trying to look for solutions instead of looking how to in the next court battle or the trial. It is not uncommon for a settlement to arise after a mediation once people get into the solution mindset. Even the most hard-headed people can be drawn into the process once they realize how much power there is in crafting unique solutions instead of trusting the resolution to a judge who has never met your family and will never be able to grasp the nuances and subtleties of your family’s unique needs – they simply are not given the time that would be needed to do that.