Divorce mediation involves hiring a neutral third party to let both sides of a divorce-related dispute air out their position. The main dispute in divorce arbitration is not whether the parties should split up. Divorce is a foregone conclusion.
Usually, couples go through divorce mediation because there is a sticking point in how they are supposed to dissolve their marriage. Maybe they can’t see eye-to-eye on how to split up the marital properties. Maybe there’s an issue involving child custody or how much child support payments the non-custodial partner is liable for.
Divorce Mediation Vs Divorce Court Proceedings
Divorce mediation has a different orientation than the divorce court. In a divorce court, you hire a lawyer to champion your rights so you can prevail and get the divorce settlement that you are looking for.
In divorce mediation, the role of the neutral third party or a divorce mediator is to get both parties to identify areas for compromise and come into an agreement. In other words, it is not adversarial but cooperative. Compare this with the typical court trial, which is, of course, antagonistic and competitive.
If they reached an amicable settlement in the different arbitration sessions, a legally binding agreement is set up. It is submitted to the local courts, and either party can enforce it, should the other party fail to meet their responsibilities.
The whole idea of divorce mediation is to provide an alternative to costly and time-intensive court trials. The issue of spousal support or alimony is handled more cordially.
Another main advantage of divorce intercession involves the overall tone. It isn’t confrontational and aggressive as in the divorce court.
What are the advantages of Divorce Intercession?
Now that you have a clear idea of the kind of fundamental benefits of divorce mediation, here is a quick drill-down of its specific advantages.
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Confidentiality
The Uniform Mediation Act governs mediation in the United States and it protects all information shared with the mediator in the process. In other words, all the information that you share with the mediator and the people you have authorized to have access to the conversations will remain private.
Compare this with divorce courts. If you go to court, all your dirty laundry is open to all who have access and it can be shameful, especially if the other party is going to use such potentially embarrassing information to get the upper hand.
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Flexibility
A court will process dates based on the existing schedule. In most court dockets in the United States, there is a long waiting time.
In settlements,, all parties involved can agree to a schedule that will work best for everyone. Different mediators have different workloads, so it’s easier to find a mediation session date that fits both sides’ timetables.
Today, online mediation sessions can be done, so both parties don’t have any excuse as far as scheduling goes. They do not have to travel or make the usual preparations for going to an appointment. As long as the schedules of the divorce mediator and both parties synchronize, they can have a session at any time.
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Compliance
Resolutions made in mediation have a higher rate of compliance than those settled in court. Why? When parties settle in court, it’s not because they think that they had the best outcome.
In many cases, parties are forced to settle because they are under pressure, or their costs are mounting. A lot of that burden disappears in arbitration.
Chances are if they reached a mutually agreeable resolution in arbitration, it is an agreement that both sides can live with. That increases the likelihood that both parties will live up to their responsibilities and duties set forth by the mediation agreement.
The divorce mediation process allows you to speak your mind, have your say, and agree, only when it serves your best interest as well as your children. The resolution produced by this process is easier on both parties, and this helps ensure that they are more compliant when it comes to their responsibilities.
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Affordability
The cost to a divorce mediation averages between $5,000 to $10,000. Compare this with a typical divorce case. If you have a smooth divorce processed in a Family Court, you’re looking at spending between $27,000 to $32,000.
However, if you have several issues to deal with your divorce or your former spouse is putting up a fight, you can effortlessly look at total divorce legal costs ranging between $78,000 to $200,000.
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Efficiency
Of all the lawyers, judges, spouses, family members involved in the divorce trial, scheduling is a nightmare, and the atmosphere in the room is somewhat charged. Indeed, depending on the tactics employed by the other side, your divorce can take several years to be completed.
Compare this with how efficient a settlement is. How long does divorce mediation take? At most, you’re looking at two to three months. Most studies found favorable results for the mediation process over the adversarial court processes
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Peace
The litigation process is a court battle where people fight and get emotional. Many of the scars can run deep, and the wounds may not entirely heal.
In divorce mediation, the whole posture of the process is utterly different. It’s all about cooperation, finding the best interest of the child, and the overall benefit of both parties. The goal is arriving at a resolution that, although far from perfect, is something that both parties can accept.
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Children are the Priority
The divorce court can effortlessly become a tool for an unhappy former spouse looking to exact revenge. Let’s just get that out of the way. It’s not necessarily about the best interest of the child. In many cases, many divorces are so charged with emotion that it scars everybody involved, including the children.
In mediation, it’s an entirely different process. It all centers on one key question. How do we move on while taking care of the best interest of the children?
Conclusion
As can be clearly seen, Divorce mediation is a far better option than divorce court proceedings. If you are intending a divorce and in need of an experienced mediator, we profile divorce mediators here for our readers.
If however you have decided to proceed with the divorce and want to do it yourself, you can start off by obtaining divorce forms here. Alternatively, a divorce lawyer can be your last option,
