How to Choose the Right Mediator for You Divorce can be a downright uncomfortable process in the best of circumstances. A mediator can make the process simpler by helping you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse negotiate an equitable settlement. Mediators are unbiased, professional and specifically trained to help you both come to an agreement, but finding…
Almost everyone enters into a marriage with the expectation it’ll last forever. However, the reality is that divorce may be a realistic possibility. One characteristic that’s common to almost all couples that are splitting up is conflict. It’s crucial to understand how to keep conflict at bay as much as possible and also handle it…
Ben Affleck & Jennifer Garner Choose Divorce Mediation When Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner announced their plans to divorce after 10 years of marriage, it shocked everyone. Their marriage didn’t seem as if it was in trouble, and they made the announcement right after their anniversary. What’s interesting about their breakup is that they plan…
There are many different approaches to getting a divorce. The most common is litigation, or hiring lawyers and taking the case to court. This course usually leads to a drawn-out process, contentious feelings and actions, emotionally damaged parents and children, and a very expensive legal bill. There is a better way to dissolve your marriage….
Going through a divorce is usually expensive and painful. Everything you tell the court is a public record. Is there an alternative to hiring an attorney and going before a judge to work out a solution? You and your soon to be ex-spouse should consider mediation. Getting a divorce without lawyers involved is a very…
The end of a marriage is a turbulent and emotional time often filled with anger. These feelings can lead to rash decisions that you may regret and other negative consequences. It is possible to learn to manage your anger at your ex-spouse, the situation, yourself, and any other aspects of the divorce. Recognize Your Triggers…
Facts about Divorce, Wills and Trusts Divorce statistics show that the reasons for getting a divorce vary but the need to plan for what will happen to a divorced person’s property and minor children is consistent. That is why after dealing with divorce, it is important for newly single people to also deal with making…
Many authorities believe that addictions permeate our families and societies, and our mediators’ experience is that most family mediations entail the effects of one or more addictions. Whether a substance addiction that involves the ingestion and dependency on various chemicals such as alcohol and drugs or a process addiction that involves the way in which…
Have you ever taken an airplane ride when you’re up there flying along smoothly and then all of a sudden, out of nowhere you hit turbulence, it gets bumpy, and then you’re bouncing all over the sky? In mediation, the process may be going along smoothly with participants discussing and sorting things out and then…
In mediation, time is money. Recognizing this, we invest about 15 or 20 minutes in the early stages of mediation going over each of the Rules and Procedures which govern Situational™ mediation. Doing this literally saves hours because it provides a map for the mediation. Just as on a road trip, a map helps to…
There has been a longstanding controversy among mediators as to the use of private sessions. While some adhere to a structure in which participants routinely meet in private session and rarely in joint session, others refuse to ever meet privately. Out of Court Solutions mediators spend about 95% of our time in joint session, but…
Informed decision-making by participants is central to the mediation process and my role as mediator. If at any time during mediation we were to conclude that a person was unable or unwilling to participate in this way, we would terminate the mediation. It is important to ensure that both participants clearly understand their prerogative to…
