Going through a divorce is extremely upsetting for everyone involved and finding a way to get through it with as little emotional fall out as possible has to be a good way forward. If you do decide that you want to make the process as non-adversarial as possible, then mediation may be the right choice for you and your ex-partner.
Going to court to decide on contact arrangements for the children and the splitting of assets will prove to be an expensive and time consuming process. Mediation has been designed so that you both have a chance to avoid that whole situation and to just sit down in a room and decide for yourselves with the help of a mediator.
Since April 2011, every couple who is getting divorced has to consider mediation, apart from cases of domestic violence or cases with child protection issues and the benefits are clear. In mediated divorce cases, the divorce was settled within half the time of divorce cases which had to go to court.
So what is mediation and how can it help you?
Mediation is where you and your ex-partner will meet alongside a third party, your mediator, who will listen to both sides and then help you to reach an agreement on all of the important decisions you need to make about your divorce. These may include access arrangements if you have children, maintenance payments, your property and all of your assets too.
You don’t need to worry about what will happen if you cannot reach an agreement during mediation either, because mediation is not the end of the road. If you cannot reach agreement at mediation you simply go to court to get a judge to decide for you instead.
You will not lose out by using mediation, but you may be able to get through your divorce more quickly and with less confrontation, so it could be worth trying first. Mediation will not work for everyone, but if you think it may work for you, you should contact a specialist family law solicitor who will be able to help you with this.
For more information about this article or any aspect of our family law services, please call us on 0333 34 44 54 8 and we will be delighted to help you (there is no charge for initial telephone discussions).
This information provided in this article is not intended to constitute legal advice and each relationship breakdown requires careful consideration in our view by a fully qualified Solicitor before decisions are made and before you embark on a certain course of action.
Shak Inayat
Solicitor
0207 183 2898
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