Some of our readers may know that mediation is a part of many divorce cases in Texas, and certainly those cases that look likely to head to trial. But many may be unfamiliar with how mediation works.
Mediation overview
In essence, divorce mediation is an out-of-court opportunity for a divorcing couple to negotiate solutions to the legal and financial issues in their case.
The most common setup for mediation is for the parties and their attorneys to come together at an agreed upon location – typically the mediator’s office or perhaps the office of one of the attorneys – where they will break into separate rooms as the mediator works back and forth between the parties to address legal stances, factual issues and, of course, potential solutions.
The mediator is a neutral third party – meaning that this individual will not advocate for or against either party. Instead, the mediator attempts to show each side weaknesses and strengths in the positions of the other party, while hearing each side out and applying oftentimes creative approaches to attempt to resolve impasses.
Whether mediation will work in any one case is usually dependent on the individuals involved in the case. Emotions and sentiment are strongly involved in many divorce cases, as our readers likely know. There are some cases in which the emotions run too high, the problems are too complex or one of the personalities is too difficult for mediation to work. Certainly, mediation is not a good option if there has been a history of domestic abuse in the marriage. But, if the divorcing spouses can focus on the legal issues and getting to solutions that work, mediation can be a useful option.
