Mediation:

An Intelligent Way to Get Divorced

Mediation is a powerful and affordable non-adversarial option to resolving divorce or any civil issue that would otherwise be tried in court and decided by a judge. Mediation is cheaper, faster, confidential, and guided by the needs and priorities of the parties themselves.

Attorney Keene is available as a neutral mediator for all of your family law,  divorce, or civil law needs.

Mediation neutral third

How does it work?

Family Law / Divorce

Divorce mediation is a confidential process in which a trained individual serves as the neutral third person mediator helping divorcing couples reach a mutually satisfactory settlement in areas including: alimony, child support, custody and parenting time, and property division.  The mediator does not function as a judge, arbitrator or even a counselor. Their purpose is in assisting both spouses in reaching a agreement — voluntarily.

Civil

Mediation is also a great tool to help resolve any civil legal dispute. Mediation can help settle employment disputes, condominium owner disagreements, and landlord tenant issues. It’s faster, preserves relationships better, and often saves the parties headaches and money. In Massachusetts, adults are free to create contracts that resolve their legal disputes. Almost any dispute can be resolved by consenting individuals who choose the option of mediation and parties walk away with a binding contract knowing the settled expectations.

Benefits Of Mediation

  • Less expensive way to negotiate agreements 
  • Avoids the “win/lose” court battles — which are often expensive
  • Offers a successful transition to co-parenting children

Excellent Success Rate

  • Mediation has an excellent success rate for resolving divorce issues. It excels in situations where both spouses are open to some form of compromise.

Puts Clients In Control of Their Lives

  • You and your spouse are in control of the process (not a judge) and arriving at your own solutions
  • May help to improve communications with your spouse which may benefit your children
  • If you wish, you can still have a lawyer assist you in the process to review the proposed settlement agreement. Alternatively,  they can assist during the mediation process

Less Time – Less Cost

  • A divorce mediation can be as long or as short as is necessary to negotiate a fair agreement.
  • Each mediation session typically lasts two hours. The sessions take place over a matter of weeks or months, depending on the issues and the ability of the spouses to negotiate and compromise.
  • Mediation, in almost all cases, takes less time than going to court (which on average takes over 8 months) and is usually significantly less expensive .

Mediation Advantages:Details

Cheaper

  • When litigating a case, often times parties each pay their attorney an hourly rate. Attorney Keene can mediate your case for half the cost because two attorneys are not required, while providing valuable insight into the laws of Massachusetts.

Faster

  • Divorcing through the overburdened courts can take over a year, increasing the pressures and stress of the process. In mediation the process is as long or short as the parties wish. It is fully voluntary and parties are free to negotiate outside of the planned sessions. Resolution can sometimes be reached with only two sessions.

Preserves relationships

  • Litigation is adversarial by its very nature. Attorneys, on behalf of their clients, often times encourage trying to take everything but the kitchen sink from the opposing party. This can leave parties exhausted and feeling overwhelmed throughout the process. Mediation, on the other hand, allows people to negotiate solutions that work for them without tireless fighting.

 Children

  • When children are involved, divorce litigation is the quickest way to sever relations between the parents and cause the children harm. It is always in the best interests of the children for parents to work out a compromise that both can agree to keep their children out of their battle.

Realistic compromises led by the parties

  • In mediation you decide your own outcome, not a third party who does not know your circumstances or family dynamic. A judge only gets to hear from attorneys on behalf of their clients. In the short time attorneys have to speak, there is no way for the judge to properly decipher the best options for the parties. Mediation takes the guessing away and puts the resolution solely in the hands of the parties to allow their unique and specific needs to be met.

Confidential

  • Unlike courtrooms, mediation is private and not open to the public. Everything shared will remain entirely confidential except for the final agreement which must be filed by the court.