For divorcing couples facing legal disputes, there are other options besides traditional litigation. Mediation and collaborative law are dispute resolution that put more power in the hands of the divorcing spouses, and less in the hands of family court judges. These methods can also provide both parties with a less stressful and less costly means of resolving disputes.
At the Law Offices of Matthew J. Long, I provide my clients with a variety of dispute resolution options. As president of the Santa Barbara Collaborative Law Group, I have the knowledge and experience to help you pursue all available means of resolving divorce disputes. My goal in every case is helping my client achieve their legal goals with as little expense and acrimony as possible.
Contact my law office today online or by telephone at 888-854-1992 to speak with an experienced Santa Barbara divorce mediation attorney.
Mediation
I employ several mediation techniques to help couples negotiate solutions to problems involving property division, child custody, spousal support and other legal issues.
Mediation can be a wonderful method of resolving family law issues — even for those couples with a high level of conflict. In fact, mediation can often transform the entire nature of the conflict from one of adversarial warfare to cooperative problem solving.
As a mediator my function is to:
- (1) act as a neutral third party who facilitates direct negotiations between spouses;
- (2) provide legal, psychological, and practical education on the issues to be resolved; and
- (3) assist the parties in identifying all possible alternative solutions.
Mediation works best when each party takes advantage of professional legal advice from a qualified family law attorney prior to entering into any final agreement. It does not require both parties to be "good negotiators" nor does it require both parties to be "strong." My job as a mediator is to help you to be a good negotiator and to help you to be strong.
Mediation does require that both parties are willing to risk the time, energy, and resources necessary to reach an agreement. Mediation should not be utilized as a dispute resolution method if one of the parties is impaired by a mental or emotional illness or drug addiction.
Collaborative Law
Collaborative family law is like mediation in that it involves a commitment to achieving a negotiated solution — but it provides each party with an attorney who will be by their side throughout the process. Collaborative family law is distinguished from family law litigation in that the attorneys are contractually restrained from representing their clients in court. This means that neither attorney has a financial incentive to be unreasonable nor threatening. By agreeing to attempt to resolve the case through the collaborative law process, both the attorneys and the clients are signaling their commitment to a negotiated settlement.
As a collaborative lawyer, my job is much like a mediator: to facilitate negotiation between the spouses, to provide education, and to assist the parties in identifying all possible alternative solutions. The collaborative lawyer, however, is able to take one more step. Because the collaborative lawyer is not required to remain "neutral," the collaborative lawyer will attempt to make predictions regarding possible outcomes in court.
As various alternative solutions are proposed, the collaborative lawyer is able to give their clients immediate feedback on how that particular solution compares to what a judge might (or might not) do. Although predicting what a judge might do in any particular situation is a hazardous proposition at best, an honest assessment of each party's litigation prospects can be a comfort (or at least a reality check) during difficult negotiations.
Because the collaborative family law process involves paying two professionals instead of one, each meeting will, of course, be more expensive than mediation. However, if it provides reassurance for both parties in "real time" during the negotiations, it can be a more cost- effective process if it avoids the timid or circular negotiating that can result from the insecurity of "going it alone" in mediation. Although no one can guarantee that an agreement will be reached, it is almost always less expensive then resolving the issues through family law litigation.
Collaborative law is perhaps the most supportive environment available for divorcing couples to achieve resolution to disputes.
Contact My Law Office Today
If you are facing a family law dispute and are interested in mediation or collaborative law, I am here to help. Contact my law office today online or by telephone at 888-854-1992 to speak with a knowledgeable Santa Barbara divorce mediation attorney.
