On behalf of Mohajer Law Firm, APC posted in blog on Wednesday, November 15, 2017.
When two divorcing parents get into an argument about child custody, they tend to form strong opinions. These opinions — inspired by the intense love a parent has for his or her children — can be firm and unyielding.
The worst part of this is, it can be damaging for children when their parents get into such a heated debate. Fortunately, there may be a way to peacefully resolve these kinds of custody disputes through child custody mediation.
What are the benefits of child custody mediation?
Some ex-spouses are difficult and there’s nothing you can do to get them to agree. Mediation might not help situations like this, when a parent does everything that he or she can just to be disagreeable and difficult. However, in the majority of custody disputes, parents can arrive at a peaceful, out-of-court agreement through child custody mediation.
Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of this highly effective dispute resolution process:
It’s a non-adversarial approach to dispute resolution. When you go to court, you are automatically thrown into the position of two parties who haven’t been able to agree — two parties who are fighting for their version of the facts, and for a particular end result that differs from the other party. Due to the fact that mediation is not legally binding, and you always have the ability to cancel the proceedings, both parties will benefit from being kind and diplomatic with one another. It’s also informal, more casual and less stressful.
The mediator, as a neutral third-party, can offer guidance and direction to help the spouses arrive at an agreement. The mediator will assist both sides in having their voices equally heard.
Your mediation process can be completed in several meetings carried out over the course of one or two weeks. The court and trial process can take months, or even years to conclude in particularly complicated cases.
Mediation will support you and your spouse in having a healthy relationship in the years to come. As it is more peaceful and less contentious, resentment between the spouses is less likely. This will benefit you and your children in the long run.
It’s a great deal cheaper than divorce court proceedings.
Mediation is excellent for nearly every legal situation
Mediation, when it can work for two parties, is an excellent way to peacefully, and cost-effectively, arrive at an out-of-court settlement agreement. If you think that you could benefit from this useful child custody dispute solution, you may want to gently discuss the idea with your soon-to-be-ex.