Divorce is a stressful process for all the people involved. Unfortunately, there’s no way of guaranteeing that you won’t have to go through it. However, you can choose to have a peaceful divorce instead of tearing each other apart in court.
One of the more civil and peaceful ways of going through a divorce is mediation. This is where the two parties invite a neutral third party to help them align the issues they need to address in their divorce. The mediator acts in the interest of both parties and considers other stakeholders such as children. In the long run, mediation is a more peaceful process.
Here are some of the reasons why mediation is better than litigation in divorce.
Quicker than Litigation
When divorcing spouses invite a mediator to help them with the technicalities of a divorce, they’ve already agreed that they’re going through with the divorce. This means that they aren’t willing to go through the push and pull of one partner refusing to collaborate.
The mediator comes in to make an assessment of the issues at hand and speaks with both individuals to charter a way forward. Sometimes, the parties may hire a divorce lawyer to advice them on the legal matters of their divorce. However, the mediator is the one that presents the best way to make the divorce fair.
With both parties in agreement, the process is faster than having to go through court processes for the divorce.
Less Stressful
Being in the corridors of the law constantly can be very stressful, especially if you’re already dealing with the stress of being in a failed marriage. You want to avoid stressful situations at all costs and have a seamless divorce process if possible.
Mediation is the right channel to use if you don’t want to deal with the stressful litigation process. The mediator is trained to guide both parties on how to reach amicable decisions, in the interest of all parties involved.
The mediation process also gives room for negotiation and discussion, unlike the litigation process where people approach each other with accusations. The room for negotiation means that you can both table your opinions freely and discuss the best way to handle the divorce.
More Child Oriented
The litigation process in divorce is harsh and barely considers the emotional effects it has on children. In some cases, children have to be taken in by government departments until their parents finalize the divorce and are granted custody of the children.
On the other hand, mediation considers the effects that divorce has on children. If you hire a qualified divorce lawyer to be your mediator, they’ll include the legal requirements as well as the emotional needs of the children in the process. This way, the decisions you make will favor both parties and be considerate of the children.
Overall, mediation gives you room for privacy as you go through one of the toughest periods of your life. You get to deal with your divorce in private and move on without dealing with societal scrutiny that you’d be exposed to if you chose litigation.