Find out how my mediation processes can help you reach an agreement in family law issues with or without the presence of lawyers.

Children's Issues - Family Dispute Resolution

Parenting arrangements for children are often the most difficult of issues to resolve and they are arguably the very most important matters to address following separation.  Property matters can wait but unless arrangements for your children are addressed quickly and sensibly your children may be adversely affected by the adult issues occurring around them.  Many studies have established that conflict between parents harms children psychologically and also physically.

No Lawyer Involvement

If you have both received independent legal advice or you haven't yet but intend to, then I can see both you and your partner together and provide you with an information session about the Family Law Act and what it says about children and more importantly how the mediation process (or the collaborative law process) can help you constructively resolve your family law issues.

Mediation involves the engagement of one professional, a saving of at least 50% of your costs on that basis alone.  As your mediator my process of mediation (known as a problem solving or facilitative approach) involves the three of us meeting together in at least two hour sessions (more or less in accordance with your needs) on as many occasions as is agreed. 

There may be times when I meet with both of you separately and apart from each other so that I can help you reach an agremeent.

My mediation costs are on an hourly basis for all work involved at $220 per hour per party.  You will know in advance of each two hour session that you will each incur costs of $440.  Compare that to each of you engaging your own lawyer, paying for letters and consultations and time which might stretch into months and many thousands of dollars without resolution of any of the important issues.

At the conclusion of a successful mediation I will help you develop your own parenting plan providing you both with a written outline of your own agreement, not an agreement imposed on you both by a court.

Where you want lawyers involved or they are already involved

If you both want to attend mediation with the presence and assistance of your lawyers they will usually want to attempt resolution of issues in one session which may last from say 4 to 6 hours (sometimes even more).  In those cases my fee for the mediation is fixed at $750 per party for up to three hours of mediation.  This fee includes premediation session with both of you.