Parents who are on the cusp of divorce often worry about protecting their children and setting specific custody terms. Maybe they have very young children in the family or a child with special needs. There are countless reasons why families may require highly-specific custody arrangements.
Unfortunately, parents may end up fighting an uphill battle if they try to obtain those specific terms via litigation. In a contested or litigated custody case, the parents have to provide information about the family to a judge who then decides what is in the best interests of their children. Judges do their best to make sound choices, but the terms they set may not properly address the current needs of the family.
In scenarios where parents agree that specific terms may be best for their children but do not agree on all of the details yet, mediation might be the best solution.
How mediation can help
When parents agree on certain elements of a custody arrangement and disagree on others, they may convince themselves that going to court is the only real solution. However, custody mediation is often a viable alternative.
The family courts encourage parents to pursue alternative dispute resolution rather than battling over every detail of their divorce. Mediators can help divorcing parents discuss disagreements so that they can resolve them as amicably as possible. They provide people with a confidential environment in which they can explore what they believe is best for their children.
Parents who address custody issues in mediation don’t have to worry about family details becoming public record. They also don’t have to give up their decision-making authority and defer to a judge’s opinions.
They can begin by clarifying the terms that are most important to them and that they both agree are necessary. From there, they can expand into settling the matters on which they currently do not agree.
As an added bonus, mediation can help parents reduce the overall level of conflict in their divorce proceedings. That can be beneficial when they have to work cooperatively to parent their children in the future. Instead of assuming that litigation is the only path forward, parents may need to look into working together.
Divorce mediation to resolve child custody and property division disputes can be a smart investment for divorcing parents. Finding ways to cooperate instead of fighting can yield major returns for an entire family in the future.