Mediation

Arizona Child Custody Mediation Lawyer

If you anticipate that child custody or parenting time issues in your divorce case might be especially contentious, mediation might be a suitable alternative for narrowing the issues between the spouses. At the Law Offices of Scott David Stewart, we help our family law clients get the most out of mediation by helping you identify core and secondary objectives, and helping you understand your rights and responsibilities under Arizona law. Contact us in Phoenix for additional information.

Mediation is a process in which the parties meet with a Mediator to discuss custody and parenting issues. In Mediation, parties may request private mediation or Mediation through the Court's Conciliation Services program. Like many things, there are "pros" and "cons" to both private Mediation and Mediation through Conciliation Services.

In Mediation through Conciliation Services, there is no cost involved. Each party attends (no attorneys). A court appointed conciliator attempts to help the parties reach agreements regarding legal custody and a parenting time schedule that benefits not only you but your children. Mediation is confidential and no one, including the Judge, will know what the parties discussed during the confidential Mediation. However, if you desire Mediation through the Court's program, contact Law Offices of Scott David Stewart to learn of how you can seek this valuable Court resource. However, due to Court congestion, parties may have to wait weeks, if not months, to obtain your first Mediation appointment.

Private Mediation is beneficial because all issues in a divorce may be discussed, not just parenting and custody issues. Attorneys can attend if requested. With private mediators, there is generally less of a wait time than with Mediators in the Court's Conciliation Services program. However, there is a fee for private Mediation. Contact Law Offices of Scott David Stewart about which option may be best for you.

If parties can reach agreement in Mediation, it is very possible no Court date will be necessary to resolve the custody aspect of your case. By reaching agreement in mediation, the parties have successfully maintained "control" of the terms of the agreement, as opposed to risking how the terms will be dictated by a Judge as a result of a trial.

Mediation can help resolve disputes in the following ways:

• Narrowing the issues between the parents to facilitate compromise and settlement
• Getting an accurate sense of the relative strength of each side's legal position
• Maintaining control of the "terms" of a parenting agreement between the parties as opposed to the Court dictating the "terms" after a trial.
• Avoiding the cost, expense, unpredictable nature and stress of a contested trial.

The mediator's job is not only to help the parties' compromise and resolve their differences, it is also to present a nonbinding recommendation to the judge based on the mediation presentation. In close cases, it can be difficult to predict how a judge might rule on a child custody issue under the broad standard of the child's best interests, so it can sometimes be preferable to settle a close case rather than accept the uncertainty of a contested court hearing. In other cases, a favorable mediation report will put significant pressure on the other side to make concessions.

At the Law Offices of Scott David Stewart, we work to make sure that our clients are fully prepared for mediation when ordered by the court or chosen by the parties. Private mediators, especially, can be extremely helpful in focusing and resolving disputed issues even in cases with a high degree of hostility between the divorcing parents. For the advice of a skilled mediation attorney, contact our office in Phoenix.