FAMILY LAW MEDIATION & DIVORCE MEDIATION
WHY SHOULD I USE MEDIATION FOR MY FAMILY CASE?
While there are many benefits offered by using alternative dispute resolution, such as mediation, to resolve your family law case, some of the most popular reasons clients choose mediation include:
- Mediation is (often) faster than litigating a case in court. Mediations usually occur over one or just a few sessions. When families are able to resolve all (or at least some) of their disputed issues outside of court, this takes much less time than disputes that involve scheduling multiple hearings, a trial, etc. Mediated cases can come to a resolution in a few of weeks or months, while heavily litigated cases may take multiple years to come to an end.
- Mediation is more cost-effective. Research suggests that the average divorce in the U.S. costs around $15,000 (and that does not even include the heavily contested cases). In contrast, using mediation to resolve family law disputes often costs thousands of dollars less, primarily due to the mediation process’s collaborative and expedient nature.
- Mediation can help you get divorced without attorneys (or with attorneys). Mediation can be done with attorneys or without attorneys, though Hancock Law Firm strongly recommends that each party take any agreement to an attorney to review it. Mediation can take place before the case is filed and before any paperwork is filed with the Court, or after the case has already been started. Although Autumn N. Hancock is a practicing family law attorney, when she serves as the family mediator, she cannot provide either party with legal advice or answer legal questions for them.
- Mediation is a more amicable way to settle a family law case. Trials are infamously combative. In family law, a trial will forever change the way parties interact. This becomes especially difficult when these parties need to work together to co-parent children in the future. Utilizing mediation can help you work with the other party and reach a resolution in a less traumatic and less argumentative manner.
- Mediation is a voluntary process to conclude your family law case. Mediation is a voluntary process where both sides meet with a mediator. The mediator acts as a neutral and impartial professional who helps you reach an agreement. The mediator does not decide on the issues like a judge would or impose a settlement based on her own ideas. A binding decision on a settlement will be reached only if both parties agree on its terms. The laws are not written with your family’s specific needs and circumstances in mind. Mediation provides you with the flexibility to think “outside the box” and allows you to agree to terms that a judge would never order and to craft a resolution to meet the particular needs of your family.
- Mediation is private, confidential, and happens out of court. With very few exceptions, nothing that happens during the mediation process will show up in court records, helping you maintain privacy during your case. What is said during mediation cannot be used against you later in court. If you come to settlement terms with the other party during mediation, we will work together to draft a mediation settlement agreement. This agreement will be signed by everyone. Then, a judge will examine the mediated settlement agreement and, if they agree that it is equitable, issue an order ratifying the agreement and making if final and enforceable. If the mediated settlement agreement resolves all of the outstanding issues in your case, your case may be closed by the Judge.
ST. PETERSBURG FAMILY LAW MEDIATOR
As a practicing family law attorney, Autumn N. Hancock has seen first hand the benefits that alternative dispute resolution and mediation can offer to families in conflict. This is why Attorney Hancock became a Florida Supreme Court Certified Family Mediator. As a mediator, Attorney Hancock is able to give parties the tools to craft their own solutions to their problems and to work together to make the important decisions that will shape the future of their family. Autumn N. Hancock has a passion for helping families work through tough transitions without completely destroying them. This is why Hancock Law Firm offers family mediation for divorce, paternity, adoption, or any family law issue.
A SUPREME COURT CERTIFIED FAMILY LAW MEDIATOR FOR YOU
Autumn N. Hancock is proud to be a Florida Supreme Court Certified Family Mediator. Attorney Hancock can serve as a neutral mediator for both parties. Hancock Law Firm also has experienced attorneys, including Attorney Hancock, who can representing one party in mediation and help to navigate the family law mediation process.
SCHEDULE YOUR MEDIATION
Are you ready to schedule your family law case for mediation with Autumn N. Hancock? Click the link below to select a date and time for mediation. Please contact our office at 727-222-0529 or by e-mail if you do not see any availability that meets your needs. Attorney Hancock is sometimes able to offer additional availability from cancellations or rearrange her schedule to accommodate the mediation needs of a specific case.