What is involved in getting a divorce?
Divorce is the legal process
to end a marriage. A divorce judgment includes orders related to division of property, financial support for a spouse,
custody of children, child support and related topics.
What approaches can be used to obtain
a divorce?
There
are several approaches used by couples to get divorced. They include:
1. Do it yourself divorce
2. Traditional litigated
divorce
3. Mediation
4. Collaborative Divorce and
5. Team Mediation
How do we decide which method to use?
Each has something to offer,
depending upon your needs. During your free initial consultation the mediator can help you determine which method is
best for your situation.
What
is Mediation?
In mediation,
the couple hires a neutral professional to assist them in reaching necessary agreements. The mediator provides information
about the divorce process and prepares all required documents. He/she actively guides discussions to help resolve legal
issues. The mediator does not represent either party in the divorce. The major difference between divorce mediation
and traditional litigated divorce is that in mediation couples get to make the decisions about their futures.
In traditional litigated divorce, the judge makes the decisions about those issues which are in conflict.
Why should we choose Team Mediation?
Divorce
usually involves a number of complex issues. Emotions and old communication patterns can strongly impact a couple’s
ability to make well reasoned legal and financial decisions.
The Team Mediation approach includes coaches who provide unique tools to help the husband and wife
prepare for discussions and stay focused on what is truly important.
The Team Mediation model provides a greater chance of success in resolving issues through an
interdisciplinary team with the appropriate skill sets.
- The attorney/mediator guides couples through the legal aspects of the process.
- A coach for
each client, trained in the mental health field, helps couples manage emotions so they can make necessary decisions.
- The
neutral financial specialist economically helps the couple gather, define and understand necessary financial information.
All of these professionals have unique training in their field of specialty, as well as mediation and the collaborative
divorce process.
Approximately how much will Team
Mediation cost?
Each case is unique.
The cost will depend upon the complexity of issues. Typically, the Team Mediation process costs from one-third to one-half
as much as if the same case had gone to court. This is because there are no court motions to prepare and no hearings
to conduct. Also, information is provided voluntarily and fully, instead of being extracted through time consuming and expensive
legal processes.
