Hiring Counsel For Simple Cases

Ending a marriage is painful, and once both parties decide that a divorce is the right thing to do, most people just want to get out of it as quickly and painlessly as they can. However, that can be tough to do when a court case can drag on for months and months. If you're interested in settling your divorce as amicably and quickly as you can, then mediation might be the right choice for you and your ex. Take a look at the top reasons why divorcing couples choose mediation.

Cost

Divorce often results in a financial blow for both parties. The last thing that you will want to do when you're strapped for cash is spend tens of thousands on your divorce. Mediation can often be a low-cost way to iron out the issues between you and your former partner, and agree on a fair settlement.

It's not a guarantee that mediation will cost less, but you do have some control over how much it costs. The average divorce costs anywhere from $2500 to $10,000. It's common for mediators to charge around $100 an hour, which means that if it takes you ten hours to come to an agreement, you would spend around $1000, and you would split that cost with your ex.

Speed

Mediation is simply faster than litigation. Court dates are often scheduled months in advance. During those months, any number of things can result in the court date being pushed back further and further.

With mediation, all that you have to do is find a mediator and schedule a date that will work for you, your ex, and your respective attorneys. You won't have to wait for months, and many mediations last only one day. Once it's over with, you never have to worry about it again.

Control

When you go to court, neither you nor your ex makes the final decision. It all comes down to what the judge thinks. The resulting settlement or custody arrangement can leave both parties feeling unhappy.

You have much more control over the outcome in a mediation situation. Your mediator is not a decision maker. You and your ex will have to be the ones to agree that you're both happy with the outcome. You pitch the ideas you have, your ex will do the same, and you'll talk them out. This process can result in creative custody arrangements or divisions of property that a judge may not be able to come up with. Mediation can leave you both feeling like you won.

If you decide to go with mediation, you should still have a divorce attorney present to help protect your interests. If you're interested in mediation, ask your divorce lawyer how to go about scheduling a mediation session in your area.