ADR Mediation Services • The Simple Divorce™

Your mediation can begin with a no-obligation phone call or appointment in our offices. At ADR we give a free separate or joint consultation to explain divorce mediation and answer questions. We can help you decide whether mediation is the best way to work out a settlement agreement.

The First Mediation Session

Both parties usually are present,and each has an opportunity to express their thoughts on the decisions that need to be made in the divorce. We identify those areas that are agreed upon, and those that require further discussion. We address asset distribution, custody, and support.

Between Mediation Sessions

The parties may experiment with different parenting schedules, or consult specialists such as a CPA or a Certified Divorce Financial Planner.

Developing Terms of Agreements

Subsequent mediation sessions involve discussions of proposals for agreement on parenting issues, child and spousal support, and property and debt division. In many divorce mediation cases, there are trade-offs between these categories that would not be made by a judge at court. Each party is encouraged to make new proposals, rather than criticizing the other party's proposals, until agreement can be reached.

Marital Settlement Agreement

The final terms of agreement are drafted into a Marital Settlement Agreement that details in plain language the specifics of your mutually agreed decisions. Each party has an opportunity to review this draft on their own, or with an attorney of their choice. Once final revisions have been made, the agreement is signed by both parties. Then it is filed with the court and becomes an enforceable divorce judgment.

We notarize all marital settlement agreements signed in our offices, and any other documents that require notarization. The agreement we write can be directly submitted to the Court, and we can help with the filling out of all of your paperwork  .

Options

If two people are not comfortable meeting together, we can meet at different times with each person, or in separate rooms in our suite of offices. At times during a mediation process, we may separate the parties at the request of the individuals or the mediator. This allows for consideration of the issues to continue without emotional roadblocks to communication. In some cases, mediation via telephone with one or both of the parties may be indicated due to geographic concerns.