Mediation is a process that helps couples who are separating to sort things out. The central goal of mediation is to support couples to resolve things, to disentangle their relationship and make sound and long-lasting arrangements for their future – while taking into account everyone’s needs, including children.
An independent and professionally trained mediator helps ex-partners to focus on the issues that need to be resolved in a constructive and non-confrontational way, will encourage them to listen and to work together to reach a consensus on the things that matter to them and their children.
This is not easy, as the breakdown of any relationship is hard and emotionally people are likely to be feeling emotions of anger, loss, hurt and rejection.
However hard, mediation is a process that helps people jointly to try to work out solutions so that they are both able to move forward, whilst avoiding the stress, delays and exorbitant cost and conflict of court proceedings.
Mediation will be quicker, far less expensive and there will be far less conflict than a court process and the decisions made will be ones made for the individuals themselves and not ones imposed by a court.
It is also important to be aware that even if you start court proceedings, your judge or magistrate is likely to encourage you to engage in mediation or another non court resolution process and may well adjourn any proceedings for you to do so.
For more information about the benefits of mediation please click here.
Please note: During #FamilyMediationWeek there will be a wide variety of free webinars for the public and other professionals working with families (teachers, health practitioners, social workers and more) as well as events for professionals working in Family Justice (lawyers, arbitrators, CAFCASS officers, judiciary and local family justice board members). Please find details here.