FAQ

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT MEDIATION

Is mediation right for me?

Yes – if you are seeking to avoid a contentious, protracted and expensive divorce and you are willing to come to mediation to attempt in good faith to resolve your differences with your spouse. By agreeing to mediate, you do not relinquish any of your legal rights and the mediation can be discontinued at any point if you, your spouse or the mediator feel that the process is unproductive.

If we can’t get along, how can we mediate?

Marital difficulties are often accompanied by anger, distrust and a breakdown in communication between spouses. A skilled mediator can defuse these negative feelings and help each party present their needs in a way that the other can hear and understand. This enables the parties to fashion an agreement that each party finds acceptable.

Is mediation a substitute for having my own attorney?

Most parties do mediation without hiring an attorney. Throughout the mediation, parties are encouraged to consult with their own attorney if they have any questions regarding their legal rights. Parties who have not consulted with a lawyer during the process may have the final agreement reviewed by their counsel before signing it. Mediation substantially reduces legal fees by limiting the lawyer’s function to reviewing the final agreement and serving as a legal consultant during the process.

I heard that in mediation I would have to pay a large sum of money up front just to get started?

We do not require any up front fees or retainers to begin mediation. Fees are paid at the end of each mediation session. In this way you know exactly how much time is being spent and for what you are being charged. You can choose to increase or decrease the time spent depending on your goals and budget.

I am afraid that I will have to compromise too much and will not get everything I want?

Mediators are trained to focus on the same issues that would be examined by the court, asset distribution, child custody, support, property settlement, and parenting plans. With the help of the mediator, the couple decides what is fair. The mediator serves to assure that there will be an equitable balance in all agreements.

Wouldn’t it take just as long to get divorce using a mediator as it would if I hired an attorney?

On the contrary, by using a mediator to handle your divorce, you save time. Typically a mediated divorce takes less than 90 days verses over a year for a contested divorce. Since all negotiations are spent with the couple being present, and conversations between spouses occur directly with one another, a considerable amount of time is saved. In a litigated divorce, one party talks to his/her attorney who in turn talks to the other attorney, who then talks to his/her client, only to begin the cycle again. By having the parties talk directly to each other with a mediator, a great deal of time is saved.

I will suffer no matter which I do, so mediation cannot help?

Pain is a natural part of dissolution. However, the mediation process mitigates the pain by empowering the parties to focus on the issues that need to be resolved. The process allows for each party to express his or her feelings while focusing on the decisions that need to be made. With the help of a trained mediator, both the emotional and psychological issues as well as the legal issues will be attended to. This process helps reduce or eliminate the additional pain that is part of an acrimonious litigated divorce.

I understand that I will have to give up my right to go to court if I choose mediation?

This is not true. You give up none of your rights when you decide to mediate. Should the mediation break down, you are always free to exercise your right in court.

I am sure I want a divorce. I thought you only go to a mediator if you want to reconcile your marriage?
Mediation is not marriage counseling. People come to mediators for the purpose of obtaining a divorce with less pain than occurs in litigation. Divorce mediation hopes to effect a balanced settlement of the issues facing couples where both parties can participate in deciding their own future. In a litigated divorce the judge decides what is fair; in a mediated divorce the couple decides.

How long does it take?

About six to twelve hours, depending on the complexity of your estate and your dynamics. If you do more work outside the session, collecting the data, sharing it and discussing it, you will spend less time in the session. If you fight a great deal about the past, the entire mediation process could take longer. It’s up to you. We move at whatever pace you set, always contingent, of course, on doing a thorough and careful job.

How much does it cost?
A typical mediated divorce costs less than $900.00 per person, and the expense may be spread over time. There is no up front retainer.

Call me at 419-626-0055 or 877-626-0055. Located in Sandusky, OH, 1401 Cleveland Road, Sandusky, OH 44870