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Comparing Divorce Mediation to Litigation
| Mediation |
Litigation |
- Parties motivate the process
- Mediators don't take sides
- Negotiation is direct, face-to-face
- Information-gathering is cooperative
- Parties' main interests are tended to
- Parties produce the agreement that sets forth the terms of the divorce
- Less expensive
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- Lawyers motivate the process
- Lawyers advocate for one side
- Negotiation is done separately
- Information-gathering can be adversarial
- Parties' settlement positions are set forth
- Judge issues decree telling the parties what the terms will be
- More expensive
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View a twelve year study on the benefits of divorce mediation
on parent's ability to effectively parent together.
Benefits of Divorce and Post-Divorce Mediation:
While not for everyone, divorce mediation has numerous advantages over the more common adversarial approach.
- Mediated divorces are usually much cheaper than litigated divorces. Comparison studies have shown a consistent cost savings to couples who choose
the mediation alternative.
- In a mediated divorce, the parties that have to live with the outcomes are empowered to make the decisions. In a litigated divorce the parties have
to live with an outcome imposed by a judge.
- If a couple has children, they will continue to have a co-parenting relationship for years to come. Mediation helps insure that they have a parenting
plan that they can both live with. This minimizes the likelihood that children will get caught in the middle of their parents' unresolved conflicts.
- Mediation also leaves the door open for compromise and further negotiation as circumstances change over time.
- A collaborative approach allows both parties the opportunity to meet and communicate in person until they reach a mutual understanding.
- In general, participants report that they feel better about themselves, and each other, at the end of the process.
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