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Is Mediation Right for You?

Bergen County NJ Divorce Mediators

New Jersey Divorce and Family Law Attorneys: Your Guide through Divorce Mediation

Bergen County Divorce Mediators

From parents to professionals, mediation has helped countless couples in New Jersey to resolve their divorce and family law matters in a peaceful, time-efficient, and cost-effective manner. Regardless of your background or current circumstances, mediation can serve as an invaluable tool for dispute resolution if you are committed to fairness, communication, and compromise. However, there are certain cases in which mediation can be exceptionally valuable, particularly when the couple has a shared interest or investment that will likely require future interaction or at the very least, careful division. Prime examples of these instances include parenthood and shared business ownership. In these cases, the ability of the parties to develop a workable solution is essential to each of their futures. There are many other shared priorities which may lend themselves to the mediation process, some of which are outlined below.

Is Divorce Mediation in New Jersey the Right Choice for You?

When considering mediation as an alternative to traditional litigation for your divorce, asking yourself the following may provide you with invaluable insight.

  • Do my spouse and I have a shared goal for the divorce process? For example, do we both want to save money that may otherwise be spent on hefty lawyers’ fees? Does our high net worth mean that financial issues require a careful hand, significant negotiation, and our ability to remain in control of the outcome? Do we both prioritize our privacy above all else? Do we both want to protect our children from a potentially adversarial divorce dispute? When you share a priority, you are both more likely to engage, invest, and commit to a successful mediation.
  • Do we have children whom we want to co-parent in the future? You and your spouse may no longer be romantically linked, but your lives will forever be intertwined to some extent if you share children. Weddings, graduations, and many life events may require you to interact in the future. Day-to-day, you will likely face many decisions about the best way to raise your children. If you and your spouse want to move forward as co-parents in a positive way, mediation can serve as an ideal jumping-off point. The mediation process allows you to establish new forms of communication, laying a foundation from which to move forward as a parenting unit.
  • Are both my spouse and I committed to putting in the work? You may not see mediation as a possibility at the outset, but if both you and your spouse are committed to putting in the work, your mediator can facilitate open communication and keep you focused on achieving a fair resolution that serves both parties and accounts for each of your needs. Understanding that the process may be difficult at times but that neither of you needs to “lose” is critical. In fact, compromising through mediation can allow both parties to feel like they “won” in the end.
  • Is there a history of domestic violence in our relationship? In mediation, the dynamics of a relationship become exceedingly important to the process and the ability to reach fair and equitable solutions. As a result, relationships wherein one party has exerted excessive control or power over the other do not generally coincide with a successful mediation. Research shows that in cases of domestic violence, mediation does not serve the submissive person as well as the dominant one. The nature of an abusive relationship often requires one person to diminish or dismiss their needs in the face of intimidation and fear. Therefore, mediation, which requires both parties to speak out and to listen, is unlikely to generate positive results in cases of domestic violence.

How Our New Jersey Divorce Mediators Can Help You

If you are considering mediation as a potential avenue for resolving your divorce, or you have chosen to mediate and are searching for the best mediator for you, the New Jersey divorce and family law mediators at Townsend, Tomaio & Newmark can help. Led by three partners with a combined 30 years of mediation experience in divorce and family law, our firm has accumulated a wealth of knowledge and resources with regard to form of alternative dispute resolution. Our commitment is to leverage all of the resources at our disposal to develop innovative solutions that address the most complex and challenging matters as we work with you toward a positive outcome for all parties involved. By encouraging communication, creativity, and compromise, we can help you to resolve your divorce in a manner that diffuses conflict and promotes amicable interaction moving forward. To discuss your current situation and learn more about our New Jersey mediation services, contact our offices in Hackensack, Bergen County at 201-897-6670 or Morristown, Morris County at 973-975-0476 anytime for a cost-free consultation.