What is MEDIATION all about?

 what it includes and what are the advantages of it in a divorce process?

Mediation is a process that requires both parties’ consent.  A mediator is usually a lawyer or a retired judge who helps facilitate negotiation settlement. So, imagine both parties have prepared their financial disclosures and have put everything on the table. 

What is the couples’ community property? They divided everything in half, and they have, potentially issues regarding spousal support, custody, and parenting plan. In this situation mediation is ideal. 

In cases where the other party is hiding assets and not willing to put everything on the table, mediation could potentially be helpful if a mediator is able to relate to the other side and provide all the documents. Without accomplishing the above, no settlement is possible. In other words, mediation is a process that requires cooperation by everyone and  anything that occurs during mediation is confidential. The mediator can even prepare all the paperwork for the parties and help file it with the court. However, the mediator is not representing either party. 

Let's say everything is settled and the parties have reached an agreement. Then, the mediator will suggest, usually, to have each party seek their own counsel, to ensure that they reached a settlement, and that there has been advisement by independent counsel. Therefore, the parties cannot later set the case aside by saying they didn't understand what they were signing. 

Lastly, the final advantage of mediation is, it can be much faster than the actual court process. Mediation can be accomplished in a day or two, sometimes in three hours, and then the parties can sign the MOU (Memorandum Of Understanding) and that's it!   What I like personally about mediation is that it doesn't have to be some third party judge who decides my future in 20 minutes. Instead, it requires both parties to participate in being in charge of their lives. The disadvantage of mediation, however, is that any party can quit and it's not satisfactory when it's not completed.