What You Need to Know About Mediation and Divorce

 Posted on June 08, 2016 in Mediation

When people think about divorce they usually think about long and stressful hours fighting over property and parenting responsibilities with their spouse. They also tend to think about the high attorney fees that go with it. However, that does not have to be the case. Some couples are choosing mediation as a way to make decisions about their divorce.

What Can Mediation Offer?

Mediation involves a trained mediator, who is not the attorney for either side, to help couples come to decisions about how to divide assets, handle parental responsibilities, and manage other issues that need to be figured out before a divorce can be finalized. Mediation can be flexible and involve other practitioners if need be as well. For example, some mediators will call in a counselor or social worker to help with the mediation process if there are emotional issues that keep coming up that are interfering with the mediation process. However, mediation is not counseling and should not be used as a substitute for seeing a marriage counselor if you think your relationship can be salvaged.

Mediation allows a couple to have full control over the decisions that are made instead of allowing the judge to decide for them. Of course, the judge has to approve the final agreement, but typically as long as both parties agree and the agreement is reasonable and not against public policy, the judge will approve it.

Furthermore, sometimes a judge will require that a couple go to mediation before allowing them to use court resources.

Why Should we Choose Mediation?

Many couples choose mediation for the simple fact that it usually costs much less money than traditional litigation. Depending on how much money is at stake, even if things do not go exactly your way with a mediator, you may end up better off because all of the money is not being spent on attorney fees.

Mediation is also a way for you to protect what is most important to you and allows you to compromise on the things that are less important. Mediation allows you to keep your priorities without court interference. For example, if there is a piece of property you are especially attached to, you may be able to keep that property in exchange for something else. If you went to litigation you may be forced to sell everything and split the profits.

Another benefit of mediation is that it tends to work well for people who have an ongoing relationship. For example, if a couple has children and are planning to co-parent, mediation can help both parties to maintain a civil relationship. Mediation treats the couple as two people working towards the goal of separation, rather than enemies fighting each other for the biggest piece of the pie.

Contact Us for Professional Help

Whether you decide on a traditional divorce or mediation, you need a qualified attorney or mediator to help you. Reach out to the skilled DuPage County mediation and divorce lawyers at Davi Law Group, LLC, who can assist you no matter which process you choose.

Sources:

http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=2489&

http://www.cookcountycourt.org/ABOUTTHECOURT/CountyDepartment/DomesticRelationsDivision/Mediation.aspx