Many spouses hesitate before filing for divorce. Divorce can cause a lot of anxiety and stress, especially for families with children. Additionally, divorce can take months, if not years, before resolving, and may cost a couple up to $15,000 per person.
Focusing on the intimidating challenges of divorce can cause people to stay in loveless marriages for the wrong reasons. Thankfully, for an easier, cheaper and faster solution, divorce mediation may be an option.
How mediation works for divorce
Couples choose mediation because it bypasses many negatives. However, mediation will not work for everyone. Spouses in abusive or dangerous relationships should still negotiate their divorce through traditional litigation, using the state’s available protections.
Mediation can work for couples motivated toward collaboration, communication and compromise. Business partners use mediation to resolve disputes without destroying the professional relationship. Mediation can work especially well for hopeful co-parents by equipping them with communication tools to help resolve conflicts and prioritize the children’s wellbeing.
Benefits of mediation
Couples using mediation can enjoy the following benefits:
- Lower cost: Mediation costs significantly less than a courtroom divorce since spouses do not pay any court fees or for courtroom personnel. Lawyers often charge less for mediation and many states cover the cost of a mediator.
- Better scheduling: Couples will not have to wait for an opening in a court’s schedule to begin negotiations. Couples can choose when and where their negotiations occur.
- Choice of mediator: Couples can hire any professional mediator to guide their negotiations. Mediators focus on communication and empathy to help each party understand the concerns and wishes of the other. A mediator will not issue a ruling or determine fault like a judge but help the couple discover a resolution that focuses on the future.
- Confidentiality: Courtroom negotiations become a matter of public record, while mediated negotiations are entirely private. Mediation will prevent old divorce arguments from resurfacing in future disputes.
- Results that last: Mediation enables the couple to design their divorce agreement, diving property, calculating alimony and discussing visitation on their own terms. Therefore, mediation produces more satisfactory results than those ruled for by a judge.
An attorney can answer questions about mediation
Couples considering mediation can ask a lawyer for advice. An attorney familiar with Tennessee divorce law can help assess one’s case, work with the judge to approve mediation, and help draft and equitable and collaborative divorce agreement.
