Is Mediation the Right Choice for My Michigan Divorce?

 Posted on December 10, 2020 in Divorce

If your relationship with your spouse has broken down, you may feel that ending your marriage is the best choice for you and your family. However, you may also be worried about a contentious, adversarial divorce and the effects that this process may have on you, your finances, and your children. Fortunately, you do not have to take this approach, and instead, you may wish to use methods such as mediation to reach a settlement that both you and your spouse can be satisfied with. If you are weighing your divorce options, you should be sure to understand how the mediation process will work to determine whether it is right for you.

Benefits of Divorce Mediation

Mediation will allow you and your spouse to work together to end your marriage without the need to resolve disputes in the courtroom. The two of you will meet together with a mediator, who will be a neutral advisor rather than a legal representative for either of you. The mediator will help you understand the issues that you will need to address while guiding you toward decisions that you can both agree on.

Mediation provides you and your spouse with complete control over the decisions that you make. While you may need to make some compromises to reach agreements, you can rest assured that your divorce settlement will not contain any surprises, and you can make sure you are satisfied with all of the decisions that are made. At the end of the process, you will attend a court hearing to finalize your case and put your divorce settlement into effect.

Mediation is completely confidential, and nothing that is said or discussed during the mediation process can be used in court if you are unable to reach a settlement and litigation becomes necessary. Since mediation encourages you to cooperate with your spouse, it can be especially helpful for parents, allowing the two of you to determine how you can provide for your children’s needs and best interests going forward.

Situations Where Mediation May Not Be Appropriate

Mediation requires spouses to be able to cooperate and compromise. In highly contentious cases, this process may not be effective, since one or both spouses may refuse to give ground, or they may spend time arguing about the reasons for the end of their marriage rather than trying to resolve their legal issues. In cases involving allegations of spousal abuse or domestic violence, mediation may not be the best option, since one spouse may not feel safe or may believe that he or she will be unable to effectively stand up for his or her rights during the discussions.

Contact Our Farmington Hills Divorce Mediation Lawyers

At Elkouri Heath, PLC, we provide mediation services for divorcing couples, and we also provide legal representation to clients during the divorce process. We can help you determine whether mediation will be beneficial in your case, and we can ensure that your rights are protected as you work to dissolve your marriage. Contact our Novi, MI divorce attorneys at 248-344-9700 to arrange a free consultation and learn how we can help with your divorce.

Sources:
https://thriveglobal.com/stories/how-divorce-mediation-can-make-your-divorce-less-stressful/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jefflanders/2012/04/24/the-four-divorce-alternatives/?sh=1fd77f4e20ae