In our culture, most people are familiar with the divorce court battles seen on television and in the movies, but Washington residents may be less familiar with divorce mediation: a process in which you and your lawyer settle the details of your divorce privately with your spouse and their lawyer.
Advantages of Divorce Mediation in Washington
• Mediation can save you money. Formal court battles can be long and extremely expensive. A mediated divorce is usually faster and can therefore save you thousands of dollars in fees and other costs. How much does divorce mediation cost?
• Mediation is faster. Court dates could stretch far into the future and battles could rage on for months. In mediation, two agreeable parties can move through the process much more quickly.
• In mediation, the judge doesn’t get to decide. When you take your divorce to court, the judge gets the final say for everything – the division of property, child custody, and visitation rights. In mediation, you and your spouse can come up with a mutually agreeable arrangement without having someone decide for you.
• Mediation can minimize animosity. Court battles can rip families even further apart than before, but mediation often teaches former partners how they can work together successfully even though their marriage is over. This is especially important if the couple has children that they will continue to raise cooperatively.
• Mediation can be less stressful for children. Divorce mediation is a private affair and your children will not be subject to the stress or emotional burden of a court divorce.
• Divorce mediation results in fewer problems down the road. Mediated divorces are less likely to return to court for other reasons, such as changes to child custody agreements. Because mediation is based on cooperation, many problems that arise down the road can be settled amicably.
