[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] Mediation is the most common, but certainly not the only, form of “alternative dispute resolution”. Let’s take a brief look at a couple of others. “Arbitration” is similar to an actual trial. The arbitrator(s) (there can be more than one) will make a decision, just like a judge will. The parties…
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An Overview of the Mediation Process
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] The mediation process might vary a little bit based on your jurisdiction, but usually the process is more-or-less the same. Often a mediation will start with a so-called “joint session”, which will involve all the parties around the same table. The mediator runs this part of the mediation, and usually takes…
Preparing for Mediation
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] Preparing for mediation is something you should not rush through. That said, often the best way to prepare for mediation is usually to be as prepared as you can for trial. Think through – and write down – what you think your best day in court probably looks like. Be at…
Why Bother with Mediation?
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] Maybe you think your spouse is too hard-headed to make mediation worth your while. You may be willing to give in to just about every demand he has, just to get the case over and done with – but you know he still won’t settle. So why bother? First and foremost,…
What is Mediation?
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] “The judge has ordered us to attend mediation before we go to trial.” What could this judge be thinking? If we could agree on everything, we wouldn’t be getting a divorce, right? If I could talk through all this stuff with my spouse, why would I even need a lawyer? Mediation…
What is “Abandonment”?
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] What is “abandonment”? Some people are afraid to leave the marital home because they don’t want to be accused of having “abandoned the marriage”. It is true that in many jurisdictions, proving that one spouse “abandons” the marriage or “deserts” the other spouse prevents the abandoning spouse from claiming alimony. However,…
Mechanics of Property Division
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] This week we’ve been looking at examples of property division. I want to shift a little bit and talk about the mechanics of property division. As a starting point, assume every division of property – that is, every instance of one spouse transferring any property to the other spouse – carries…
Property Division: “Equitable” Does Not Always Mean “Equal”
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] Yesterday we looked at a fact pattern that shows how a court can make “equitable” awards of property that are not necessarily “equal”. Yesterday’s example was based on each party’s current ability to pay. Today we will look at a common fact pattern which involves different time horizons. Let’s say the…
Equitable Division of Property
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] Yesterday we looked at “community property”. Today we will look at the property division scheme in effect in most jurisdictions: “equitable distribution” (or “equitable division”). The key word, of course, is “equitable” – which does NOT necessarily mean “equal”. For many judges, they will start out presuming an equal division is…
Division of Community Property
[Ed: Originally published on Facebook.] This week we’re going to take a closer look at property division laws. There are basically two types of property division schemes – “community property” (“CP”) and “equitable distribution”. Knowing these rules is important because you need to be able to make reasonable assumptions about what the judge can or might…