Okay — having to litigate your divorce is far from the worst thing you’ll ever have to do. In fact, it’s the best way for many spouses to permanently and legally end their marriage. Plenty of other spouses, though, should strongly consider using mediation for their dissolution of marriage (Florida’s legal term for divorce).
When you choose to mediate, you and your spouse agree to meet with a neutral third party. This third party, which is the mediator, will help you and your spouse come to a mutual agreement as to the various issues in your divorce which depending on your individual circumstance may include division of marital property, alimony, child support, and parental responsibility and time sharing. Mediation could consist of one session or several sessions that last a few hours.
So, why is it best to mediate your divorce? There are a few reasons.
- You have more control over the process — and outcome. When spouses cannot come to an agreement on the various terms of their divorce, a judge steps in to make a decision. The issue with having a judge make a decision is that the judge does not know your family like you do and makes their decision based on what they hear in court. Mediation lets you and your spouse have more control over the terms of the various issues in your divorce and allows you both to tailor the terms of the divorce in a way that best suits your family. .
- Mediation can save time and money. If you and your spouse can come to a mutual agreement in one or two sessions of mediation, the expenses could end up being a small fraction of the costs of a full-blown court battle, which can last months and in some cases years.
- The results of mediation are confidential. Pretty much everything that goes on in court becomes a matter of public record. While there’s no shame in having to litigate certain aspects of your divorce — ignore those who screech endlessly about “dirty laundry” — your post-divorce life could be more peaceful if you or your spouse’s extended family does not have access to every last detail of your split.
- You and your spouse can get a head start on co-parenting. By nature, litigation invites conflict and disputes between the parties. Working with your spouse and being productive when it comes to making a parental responsibility and time-sharing agreement is good practice for the real thing. Yes, you will need to communicate with your spouse after the divorce to care for your children, but mediation can grease the wheels and make it easier.
We Can Be Your Mediators
The law may require you and your spouse to speak with a mediator before jumping to litigation for a dissolution of marriage. While you won’t get everything you want in mediation, the same is true in court. If you are interested in a less expensive and more time-efficient process that gives you a greater amount of control, get in touch with Rotella & Hernandez today to speak about our mediation services. While mediation might not be right for everyone, it could be right for you.