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…

When explaining community property laws during divorce mediation, clients frequently respond: “But he didn’t pay for any of my new car or the monthly payments. It is all coming from my income – you’re saying that he is entitled to half of its value?” or “So you’re saying it doesn’t matter if she was unfaithful?…

As a mediator I provide divorcing couples with legal information as opposed to legal advice. However, wanting my clients to have additional support from an independent attorney if either one or both of them wants it, I also provide my clients with a list of what I call “mediation friendly” attorneys who can give them…

Few events impact one’s life as profoundly as a divorce. During this time, major life decisions are required related to one’s children, finances and living situation, to name a few. Intense emotions often accompany these decisions and discussions; hurt, sadness, frustration and anger are often involved. So, it is no wonder that divorce is estimated…

1. Agree to put the best interests of children first and foremost in all decision making. Indeed, include this in writing as part of the mediation ground rules, with the understanding that the mediator can remind the parents of this should one or both of them lose sight to it. 2. Construct a cooperative parenting…

Video Transcript Oliver Ross: “The difference between legal separation and divorce (in Arizona) is that the marriage continues in legal separation, where in divorce the marriage ends. That’s pretty obvious. With legal separation, the marriage continues, but the community is separated. In other words, as of a certain date in the court process, each spouse’s…

After a moment’s contemplation, Mary responds: “I tried for a long time. He wouldn’t go to counseling and now he says I’m the one who hasn’t worked on it. I can’t live with him anymore—with his drinking and all. I never know when he’s going to yell at me or the kids.” “Oh sure, Mary….

John and Mary Smith arrive at my office for a pre-mediation consultation. Mary had called to arrange for the consultation, informing my assistant of her intent to divorce John. Just as passengers preparing to travel by airplane select a particular airline, flight, and seat number, people preparing for mediation such as Mary and John select…

Scottsdale divorce mediator explains the process of a collaborative divorce Video Transcript Oliver Ross, Owner of Out-of-Court Solutions: “Collaborative divorce is a process in which each spouse, each party to the divorce, has their own attorney and the attorneys involve accountants if there is substantial amount of assets involved. The attorneys might involve psychologists, if…

It is important to keep yourself centered during a divorce Video Transcript Oliver Ross, Glendale Divorce Mediator: “I would suggest the actions you take are directed towards getting yourself centered while in the midst of the emotions that are so common and normal for people to experience when they’re considering divorce; the anger, the sadness,…

During a divorce, decisions regarding the marital home often involve difficult financial and emotional considerations. The divorcing couple must decide whether one person will stay in the home, whether the home will be sold, and, regardless of the disposition, will need to agree on the current fair market value. When the home in question is…