Family Law Mediation

Family Law Mediation

Mediation allows parties to a family law dispute to navigate the issues of the dispute in a productive way to try and resolve the dispute and put an end to the conflict.  Mediation can be a very effective tool to end disputes or reduce the issues that are in dispute.

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Mediation typically involves openly talking about and negotiating the issues in order to understand each other's point of view and to resolve issues by understanding what is really important and what are sticking points that are not that important.  The discussions and negotiations during mediation are protected from being used against either party in court proceedings which ensures the parties can be open about the issues and resolving the dispute.

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Is Family Law Mediation Right for You?

Mediation is not right for everyone and before you proceed with mediation, it helps to ensure that:

1. Each party understands what the other party's actual areas of dispute are;

2. That each party is willing to come together and openly discuss and consider the issues;

3. That any key documents and evidence which will help to resolve factual disputes have been exchanged between the parties so that everyone is on the same page; and

4. The parties and their representatives are willing to approach the dispute with aim of resolving it.

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In family law disputes, a well time mediation can help the parties resolve the matter or if the matter cannot be resolved, it can resolve key issues which can help the dispute resolution process in the future.  Family law disputes, in particular, are often complex disputes which involve many aspects and often carry many emotions with them.  Mediation is an effective means of helping parties to understand the real issues and work toward resolving them.

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How Is Mediation Run?

There are lots of options to run a mediation and flexibility is key.  An important requirement of mediation is the Mediator.  The Mediator is a third-party person who is impartial and unbias.  The Mediator has been trained in alternative dispute resolution and they specialise in getting people to come together and resolve disputes.

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In almost all instances, mediation is run from three rooms.  Each party has their own room and there is a central room where disputes are mediated.  Depending on the circumstances, the parties may attend to the central room in person to take part in the mediation or only the party's representatives attend to the central room on the party's behalf.

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In some cases, only each party's representative will attend to the central room.  This is often the case where there has been family violence, serious emotional disputes or there is a power imbalance.

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Mediation is run in a respectful way where each party should allow arguments to be expressed.  It is an environment where both constructive talking and listening are required if the dispute is to be successfully resolved.

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The Benefits of Mediation

Mediation can often resolve the dispute or even when the dispute is not resolved, it can lead to the resolution of key issues which making the dispute shorter.  Most of the time, mediation saves significant time, costs and stress compared to resolving a dispute through the courts or continuing with court proceedings without having mediation.