Should I Try Mediation Before Divorce?

Divorce is not a standard process, and there are various ways of approaching it. Couples need to take into consideration their well-being when ending their marriage, and how best to manage the legal consequences. Mediation provides numerous benefits when seeking to keep things peaceful and move forward quickly. Conclude the legal side of a divorce with the least financial and emotional impact through mediation. Experiencing a divorce is stressful, and addressing it requires real work on your part. For recovering you’ll need to focus on compassion, personal-care, and enduring the pain.

Regrettably, whereas you’re doing a lot of emotional work, the dissolution of a marriage still comes with many realistic concerns. You’ll have to manage the early signs of stress, and you’ll be required to sign documents and make decisions that are going to affect every facet of your life. Ending the relationship, you believed would last the rest of your life will take its toll psychologically, mentally, and economically. However, there are ways to recover from the psychological impact and to minimize the financial consequences.

One the more powerful tools is mediation, in which involves an unbiased individual – the mediator – helping each party to come to a mutually acceptable settlement. The mediator assists with the negotiation process whereas the final decision-making power stays with the parties getting divorced.

Are you thinking about getting divorced? Are you beginning the divorce process or in the middle of divorcing? There are a lot of reasons why you need consult with a mediator prior to signing or are in agreement to anything. The following ten of the major reasons.

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1. The Documentation is Still Done on Your Behalf

DIY divorces where each of you complete all the documents are becoming even for popular since they appear to be less costly. And they usually are when you get everything correct on your first try. Nevertheless, most individuals without any legal knowledge won’t be able to accomplish that.

Mediators are able to assist with this with the issuing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), in which details the divorce agreement that you come to. An attorney is then able to alter the MoU to legal documentation and then submit it to the court. You are going to still save on legal expenses, but you’ll also have the added contentment knowing that your documents were filed correctly.

2. You Get More Individual Focus

One of the vital aspects of mediation is that each side are permitted time to be heard and speak. Overburdened judges don’t have the time to discuss your circumstances and consider solutions, but that’s exactly what you hired a mediator to do.

3. Mediation is More Cost-Effective

The cost of divorce differs from state to state, but it’s usually quite high. Besides helping with documentation to keep costs down, mediation lessens expenses by being cheaper by the hour than an attorney. Furthermore, because both parties are consulting one professional, each individual’s payments are cut in half.

4. Children’s Exposure to Friction is Lessened

For a lot of individuals, their children’s distress throughout divorce is even more unpleasant than the pain they go through themselves. In-person and/or on-line counseling (particularly, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic) can help enormously, but you’ll also want to restrict their exposure to conflict in every way you can too.

Throughout mediation, children aren’t necessary to appear in court or be interviewed by multiple professionals. The process maintains each parties’ respect – all of which lessens the conflict and hostility that vulnerable children are affected by.

5. Increased Confidentiality is Guaranteed

When you are present in court, you and your attorney are going to need to argue your case in the presence of LEO’s, judges, employees of the court, and other parties that are present with their attorneys. As you can probably tell, a lot of individuals discover the process of talking about their lives in a roomful of random people a little horrible.

These public hearings are not part of the mediation procedure. Any meetings, discussions, and work notes that are created and/or used are categorized as private and personal — decreasing the overall stress impact on everyone significantly.

6. You’ll Come to Resolution Quicker

Mediators are usually able to help divorcing individuals come to agreements a lot quicker than attorneys involved in back-and-forth judicial proceedings. Because of this you’re not conditional on the court’s schedule and the judge’s calendar of cases could make the process even quicker.

7. Solutions are More Customized and Adaptable

You have more control over the agreements reached throughout mediation and are under no legal liability to follow the judge’s ruling. The whole process is also a lot less conflicting, and mediators can bring up particulars that lawyers (for strategic reasoning) might not be.

With the focus on resolving issues impartially instead of proving that one party is right and needs to “win,” you both should feel more content bringing up different matters and arriving at solutions.

8. You Can Still Go to Court

Choosing to use divorce mediation doesn’t mean forever ruling out the possibility of heading to court. If that road begins to appear like the best plan of action, is still open, and you’re still free to accept it. No matter what was discussed with the mediator stays private, so both sides get a fresh start in front of a judge.

9. You’ll Still Acquire Counsel

Even when you don’t end up heading to court, you can still speak your attorney throughout mediation. Professional, revered mediators are going to usually be able to help you find a mediation-friendly attorney that is going to help you reach cordial agreements.

10. Mediation Benefits on Positive Feelings

Whereas it might not feel this way presently, life is going to go on and return to a new (usually much healthier) normal following your divorce. What happens throughout the proceedings is going to define the tone for what your new normal is going to be like, so it seems logical to try and build on positive feelings.

You’ll be urged to recognize your ex-spouse’s praiseworthy traits, as they are going to be urged to do with you. This helps encourage warm feelings among you, which is able to keep life after divorce a lot more balanced and enjoyable.

When you’re going to be in frequent contact with your ex, particularly if you’ll still required to work together when co-parenting, these positive feelings can be a priceless beginning point. Whereas finding this common understanding is unlikely to be effortless, it’s positively worth it.

Source:

Wright, K. (n.d.). 10 reasons why you need divorce mediation before signing. Thriveworks. https://thriveworks.com/blog/10-reasons-divorce-mediation-before-signing/.

Speak with Our Divorce Mediators in Arizona Today

While the divorce mediation process is not for everyone, it can save you money, stress, and hassle. Speak with a professional divorce mediator to find out if divorce mediation is right for your family.

Let us show you how divorce mediation can be a perfect solution to allow you to end your marriage today without ending your family.

If you’re ready to start your consultation with Ogborne Law, visit our Mediation Consultation request page.

Ogborne Law can help with divorce mediation in Phoenix, Arizona, and surrounding areas. Our law office is located at 5020 E Shea Blvd Suite 240, Scottsdale, AZ 85255 inside the Paradise Valley Plaza.