Divorce Mediation Lawyer Settles Marital Conflicts Out of Court
A divorce mediation lawyer is often chosen to be an active participant in the mediation process, helping their client formulate proposals and counterproposals in order to reach a mutual resolution. In today’s society, the use of mediation in divorce cases has become very common and often required by the court, because divorcing couples can resolve matters between themselves with the help of a mediator. When the parties participate in “attorney assisted mediation”, your divorce mediation lawyer looks out for your best interests, providing advice and support, ensuring they have all the information they need to make informed decisions. In addition, having the parties’ own lawyers present helps to neutralize highly emotional or volatile situations that may arise.
Very often, family law mediation sessions involve just the divorcing spouses and a neutral third-party mediator. If you are represented by a divorce mediation lawyer, you may want your attorney to attend divorce mediation with you. This can be determined by agreement among the mediator, your lawyer, your spouse, and your spouse’s attorney. If your spouse chooses to have an attorney present, then you should as well. Depending on the goals of the mediation and the parties’ ability to communicate directly with each other, it can be advantageous to have a divorce mediation lawyer involved.
While you don’t need to have a divorce mediation lawyer, it can be a good idea to have your own attorney who can inform you of your legal rights. Most people are not knowledgeable about family law and the many complexities of divorce. For instance, if you underestimate the strength of your legal position, you could make decisions that can have unwelcome repercussions in the future. You should at least consult with a divorce mediation lawyer prior to entering into the mediation process to educate you on relevant state laws on marital property, how child support is calculated, and other important issues.
Your divorce mediation lawyer can also assist you by explaining the rules and procedures of the mediation process, help choose a neutral third-party mediator (unless chosen by the court), and help you decide potential settlement options and review a proposed settlement for missing details or other potential issues.
Once your negotiations are finished and you have found a solution, your attorney will review your final agreement before you sign it. Either the mediator or a divorce mediation lawyer will prepare the formal divorce paperwork and, in many cases, a parenting schedule or parenting plan. These documents will be incorporated with the rest of your divorce paperwork and become part of your divorce judgment, which means that a court could enforce them if one of you doesn’t do what the agreements say you’ll do.
Mediation is a safe, non-binding process and the agreements that are reached in mediation are not final until the parties have had the opportunity to consult legal counsel, if they chose, review and sign a binding settlement agreement.
