Separation mediation process

separation mediation process
The Separation Mediation Process of a Divorce
The divorce process can be such a drag if you and your partner fail to agree promptly. This is bound to cost the both of you extra regarding court fees. Therefore, it is imperative that you consider mediation. Mediation ensures that the wishes of either partner are included in the agreement. It also ensures that agreements are arrived at faster especially when children are involved.

The mediation process takes place in stages as discussed below:

1. The Contact Stage

This is the first stage of the mediation process. It involves you reaching out to your mediation service provider. However, before then, should have chosen an accredited family mediator to handle your case. All mediators and organizations offering these services are required to be vetted by the Family Mediation Association.

You can call your mediator or visit their holdings physically to arrange a convenient schedule.

2. The Mediation Information Assessment Meeting

This is like a mini-session where you and your partner open up to your mediators about the case at hand. If your partner is reluctant to visit the mediation company maybe because you initiated the divorce, your mediators will ask to contact them on your behalf. The meeting also enriches you with information about mediation, costs involved, and the available legal options.

3. The first Session

This session only commences when both partners have agreed to attend. Also, you and your former partner, as well as the mediator, have to be in agreement that it is safe to begin the process. It is often deemed as a planning meeting. That’s because all the ground rules and the principles of mediation are laid down in this session. It also involves the signing of a confidentiality agreement. You together with your ex-partner then will be required to establish an agenda for the negotiation. It could be about children custody or sharing of finances and assets.

4. The second session

In most cases, the second session in the separation mediation process involves finance and property mediation. Both parties are asked to provide all your financial information which includes assets and liabilities. An extra session may be created if the financial details cannot be gathered all at once. When everything has been collected in one pool, the mediators will help you determine what needs to be divided and who gets what.

All the documentation showing ownership of assets need to be in duplicates. The negotiators keep copies of each until a settlement is reached. If children form part of the agenda of mediation, a convenient arrangement is created at this stage Aspects such as child maintenance fees and custody will also be negotiated.

5. Final Negotiations

The key points from the previous mediation sessions will be gathered to provide a benchmark for asset sharing.

6. Legal Advice

Your mediation company can provide you with advice on how to go about the legal process associated with a divorce.They will also advise you on finance issues such as debt- mainly how to share the burden.

These are the key steps that will lead to a peaceful and quick divorce through mediation. It is proven that couples who have gone through the separation mediation process are three-times less likely to go back to the drawing board after the case has been concluded.

Need help? Call a family mediator today on 03300 101354

General information about Mediation, Please click the links below to find out more info:

Family’s are deeply affected by divorce or separation, especially when there are children in the family. Often these painful situations can be helped with the aid of a mediator who will hold a  Mediation Intake Assessment Meeting or MIAM. MIAMs can soothe ruffled feelings and ensure that communal assets are divided equally, make sure that financial obligations of both parents are laid out and help to make the break as easy as possible for all the members of the family.

When attending a court proceeding on the matter, the family will need to present an FM1 (Family Mediation 1 form) which confirms that a MIAM has been held.

As of April 2014, significant changes were made to the judicial system regarding separation and divorces, particularly where children were involved. These changes ensure that the welfare of the children is paramount, with minimal impact on the children and as little negativity as possible. One of the major changes was a requirement for a mediation session or MIAM to be attended before any court proceedings to do with financial or custody matters (hence the need for a FM1 to be produced).

If the split is acrimonious and both parties find it difficult to be in the same room, as would happen with face to face mediation, it is possible to ask for shuttle mediation.

Shuttle sessions happen when the two parties are seated in separate rooms and the mediator shuttles between the two, discussing issues and offering solutions.

Shuttle mediation is often a good solution with distance between the parties allowing for rational and reasoned thinking.

Mediation sessions are now a legal requirement, and your ex’s lawyer will make this clear to him or her.

Offering shuttle mediation, in which they will not have to share a room while coming to an agreement, is sometimes a way to make the thought of mediation more palatable.

Mediators can also help with will disputes: resolving issues between heirs and coming to an acceptable compromise in the event that the will is ambiguous or unclearly worded.

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