Mediation
Helping parties resolve conflicts peacefully outside of the courtroom.
What is it?
Mediation is generally the most affordable divorce or separation process that involves a specialized professional. A mediator is an impartial third party who helps parties have productive conversations and generate creative solutions for their unique situations. A mediator can provide parties with legal information, such as what the law says, but cannot give legal advice or tell a party what to do. Mediation empowers parties to take control of their divorce or separation and gives them an opportunity to come to an agreement that works well for their unique situation.
Mediation sessions are completely confidential and voluntary. Nothing said during a mediation session can be used against a party in court and a party can choose to cease mediation at any point in the process.
Why Choose Align?
Align will tailor the mediation session to the parties’ needs and particular situation. An Align mediator meets with each party individually before a joint session. During the individual sessions, the Align mediator learns first-hand about the issues that are most important to each party, how to support each party during a session, and what dynamics tend to affect the parties when they communicate.
Understanding both parties’ needs from the beginning, the Align mediator can help the parties structure a format and process that will work best for them. The parties set goals and determine an order to discuss the contested issues that makes sense for them. The Align Mediator will set the length of the sessions based on the parties’ schedules and their negotiation stamina.
Align mediators’ wide range of experience in high conflict settings has trained her on how to handle and soften the most contentious dynamics. Even if people do not leave with agreements, they often can at least understand where the other party is coming from and improve their communication. The Align mediator will document any agreements made during the sessions and transmit them to the parties’ attorneys if they are represented. If they are not represented, the Align mediator can assist parties with filing the proper court divorce pleadings to finalize their divorce.
Align mediators can mediate any issues involving family law disputes, including, but not limited to, child custody, parenting time, spousal support, finances and property division.
Thank you for all your help! What could have been a painful process was really quite
pleasant, all things considered.
- Mediation Client
Streamlined Mediation
Are you and your partner close to a full resolution but want to meet with a family law professional to make sure you’re not missing any issues?
Streamlined mediation at Align is for you.
Step One:
Meet with an Align mediator to review the settlement questionnaire and legal issues that need to be included in a divorce judgment. Exchange any financial documents that need to be shared.
Step Two:
Fill out the settlement questionnaire to document your agreements.
Step Three:
Discuss the agreements you arrived at with your Align mediator. If there are any outstanding issues the Align mediator will work with both parties to reach a resolution.
Step Four:
Once a a full divorce or family law resolution has been reached, the Align mediator will draft your court divorce pleadings. The parties will review the court divorce pleadings with the Align mediator and then Align will file the court divorce pleadings on behalf of the parties.
SITUATION #1
Your marriage is over, but nothing has been filed with the court.
While the end of a marriage is frequently a time of high emotion, if both parties have accepted that a divorce is likely, seeking help through mediation at this point may be the cheapest and fastest way to resolve all issues. This private process is efficient and more personalized, and therefore more likely to produce an agreement that both parties can live with. If a final agreement is reached, Align mediators can even help file the appropriate paperwork with the court.
Here are some examples:
Mediation can work at any stage of a divorce or family law case.
SITUATION #2
Your divorce has been filed with the court, and you are ordered to attend mediation.
One party has filed for divorce, the other has responded. Maybe one or both of you already have a lawyer ready to take this to trial. However, many courts recognize the value of mediation to quickly and effectively resolve issues — your court may REQUIRE you to attend mediation. If this is your situation, you may find that the local county court-attached mediators have a months- long waitlist for services. With Align you can satisfy your mandatory mediation requirement with a tailored approach to meet your unique needs. This private option allows you to bypass the queue and move on with your life.
SITUATION #3
You are deep in the contentious litigation process but have identified one or more issues that might be resolved by getting the parties together to talk it out in a safe place.
A neutral mediator, not representing the interests of either party, is trained in techniques to facilitate communication and even soften the most contentious dynamics, helping to guide the parties toward a tailored resolution that each can live with. Every issue you resolve in mediation is one less item to fight about in court.
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Greater client satisfaction than with litigation
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Stay out of court
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Tailored agreements to your family dynamics
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Improve Communication
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Maintain Important Relationships
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Private process
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Faster resolution than litigation
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More affordable than litigation
Benefits of Mediation
Make an Appointment
Make an appointment by calling our office at 503-344-4854 for a free initial 15 minute call to see if Collaborative Law is the right fit for you.