By Michelle Garneau

Mediation is being used more now than ever before as an alternative to going to court or battling it out with lawyers.

The mediator is impartial and not personally involved in your conflict.

They set out guidelines to help you to communicate in a more respectful and productive manner. This makes way for people to be more open to explore different options and to find solutions that are satisfying to both of them.

Mediation focuses on collaboration and cooperation versus the adversarial litigation process where conflict can escalate and make it very difficult for people to reach an agreement.

In mediation, you pay one professional who is dedicated to helping you both reach a resolution usually in just a couple of sessions.

This is an advantage over getting caught up with costly and time-consuming back and forth negotiations between yourselves and lawyers which can go on for months or even years and may financially ruin families.

The discussions that take place in mediation stay there. The mediator and the people in the mediation sign an agreement stating so.

This is much more private than sitting in a court room discussing your personal matters, including information about your children, in front of judges, lawyers and the general public.

Mediation can take place not only during the day, but also in the evening or on a weekend.

This way, you are able to work around your family’s busy schedule rather than being on the court’s timeline.

The mediation can take place in person, by video or teleconference depending on your circumstances.

The more conflict between the parents, the more stressful it is for children.

Even if they are not exposed directly to the conflict, children can definitely sense that a parent is stressed or that there is tension between their parents.

Mediators help to reduce the conflict and keep the focus on the children, thus being more sensitive to everyone’s needs and minimizing any damaging effects.

People who use mediation get the chance to speak, to be heard, and to look at different options while working directly with a mediator.

In court, most often you will not get the chance to speak at length or to tell your whole story. The lawyers usually do most of the speaking for you.

In mediation, people generally get to choose which matters they wish to discuss and in which order.

They make all the decisions for themselves and their children rather than having a judge decide for them.

People who use mediation, get the opportunity to have a more open and in-depth conversation.

They can create an agreement that fits their family’s specific needs rather than ending up with a more generic and/or less complete agreement that they may get in court.

Mediation allows people to put their issues on the table, clear up any misunderstandings and get the chance to come up with their own solutions.

When people make their own agreement, they are more likely to stick to it and for a longer period of time.

Mediation can help you to get through your divorce in a time and cost efficient manner so you can move on with your life.

Using this process keeps the focus on reducing conflict and respectful communication making it easier for people to come up with options they may not have looked at before.

Going to mediation can get you through this challenging time in your life in a less stressful and damaging way where you can maintain your self-respect and be more effective in co-parenting your children.

If you are experiencing challenges with your separation or divorce, please contact us for information on mediation and how you can resolve issues in a less stressful and more economical way.

We can be reached at 780-417-3119 or you can book a free phone consultation online.