If you and your spouse are looking for ways to settle your divorce outside the courts, you might consider mediation. Once you are done with all the negotiations with your spouse, you may need to hire a divorce mediation lawyer. Your lawyer will explain what is divorce mediation along with the processes involved in it, and so on.
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What happens in divorce mediation?
In divorce mediation, both the parties meet the mediator who is neutral to both parties and are specially trained to resolve the issues in divorce. Mediation often occurs in a private room or office, but nowadays, couples can also do mediation online.
The mediator will help reach an agreement on the issues that both the spouses have to resolve to finalize their divorce. Keep in mind that mediators do not provide legal advice or decisions but rather work as facilitators to figure out what is best for the spouses.
The processes involved in mediation
Although every mediator has a different way of facilitating mediation, most of the mediation processes are the same.
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Before mediation
Before the mediation process begins, you may have to provide your background information about your family, marriage, and issues involved in the marriage to your mediator. Your mediator will ask you to write a “mediation statement,” including an outline of the divorce issues you need to resolve and basic information.
Then you will be asked to sign an agreement that will mention that you will keep every information said in the mediation confidential, and your mediator can not disclose any information in your session in court.
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During mediation
Unless it is an online mediation, mediations are usually held in a conference or private room where no other public is present. Sometimes mediators break the spouses into different rooms to discuss matters secretly, while some meet the spouses together in the same room for the entire mediation. For couples who have their own attorney, the mediator will ask them to meet privately before beginning the session.
The next step will be figuring out the issues that you and your spouse agree on and do not agree on. The two most important things that you need to follow to reach an agreement are:
- Listen to your spouse’s point of view and
- Be open to compromise
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Completing the agreement
When you finish negotiations and resolve the divorce-related issues, your mediator will draft an agreement, a parenting plan, or a schedule. The agreement will only include the topics you have discussed during the mediation process.
Once the court approves your agreement, the agreement will become the final part of your divorce settlement.
