Many people assume that every divorce is extremely contentious, challenging, and expensive. While contested cases can be all of these things, you can take steps to make the process run much more smoothly. One of those steps is to engage in divorce mediation. Mediation often prevents your divorce from going to court, which is beneficial for everyone.
At least one mediation session is required by law in Utah, and you should take that session seriously. An experienced family law attorney in Salt Lake City will often encourage mediation because it is so much more productive and efficient compared to bringing your case to court. Here’s why:
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You can create a plan and agreement that works for you.
When you take a divorce case before a judge, you are asking the judge to create an agreement for you and your spouse. You may not agree entirely with what the judge does, and it may even be unworkable for you for one reason or another. This happens more often than you might think because the judge has no prior knowledge about your case before the trial. The only things the judge knows about your situation is what you present at hearings or at trial. It is hard to get a feel for the issues that you face on a daily basis with this very limited exposure.
In mediation, you and your spouse can sit down and decide what is important to each person and create a plan that works for you. It may not be exactly what either of you wants, but it is workable under the circumstances. Creating your own agreement also allows you to get creative about how things will work too—a judge may not think to do that or may not be permitted to make the type of agreement that you and your spouse create.
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It is much more cost-effective and fast.
Trials take a lot of preparation and time. You pay your attorney to prepare and present your case in court. There is far less preparation required for a mediation. That means that it is cheaper for both parties.
Trials can last days, and it may take the judge several months to get a decision back to you. In mediation, you can decide what will happen moving forward in a matter of hours. While it still takes time for the court to approve what you agreed upon at mediation, it is a much faster process. That means that you get a cheaper, speedier progression that often leads to better results for everyone.
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You can avoid the stress of a trial.
Divorces can be incredibly emotional. Divorce means that your life, and the lives of your children, will never be the same. That realization can be tough for anyone to work through. In mediation, you can deal with these emotional issues in private, often in a room with just you and your lawyer. At trial, you have to present your case in public, in front of your spouse and his or her attorney. This process is emotionally draining, and many people choose to avoid trials for this very reason.
Getting the Mediation Process Started
Christopher Ault of The Ault Firm, P.C. regularly mediates family law cases for his clients. In fact, Mr. Ault is a licensed mediator himself, so he understands the benefits of mediation in divorce cases. To learn more, contact The Ault Firm by calling 801-539-9000.
