When you decide to divorce your spouse, it’s a difficult decision. It can cause tension and upset on both sides, and in some cases, all communication may come to a halt.
It’s hard to get through situations like this, but it is important for you and your spouse to consider mediation. Divorce mediation is not designed to help you get back together or work like couple’s therapy. Instead, it’s a way of helping you work through divorce-related issues and resolve your case.
When Is Mediation Beneficial For Divorcing Couples?
Mediation is usually best for situations where both parties are willing to work together to resolve disputes. For example, if you and your spouse are able to divide the majority of your property but need help figuring out how to divide time with your children, a mediator could help you with that.
Mediation also costs less than other forms of dispute resolution (in most cases). To save money, you may want to consider working with a mediator for a few sessions.
Mediation works well when both parties are committed to staying out of court and are on good enough terms to work together towards a solution. If you and your spouse cannot communicate well or one of you doesn’t want to be flexible or negotiate, mediation may not be right for you.
What Happens If You Come To An Agreement In Mediation?
If you and your spouse are able to come to an arrangement you both agree on in mediation, you can take your agreement and have your attorney draw up a settlement. Both of you will sign the respective document and submit it to a judge for approval in court.
In the case that you finish your mediation sessions and have second thoughts about an agreement you came up with, you should know that mediation is not binding. As a result, it is possible to go through mediation to try to work out your issues and to end up disagreeing with the end result.
If that happens, you can still take your case to court, or you can try other alternative dispute resolution techniques. Your attorney can go over some additional options with you to help you understand the best ways to resolve the divorce issues you’re dealing with.
