Long Island Family Law and Mediation Blog
Each mediator has their own approach; therefore this blog entry is not intended to be a definitive map for divorce mediation in Long Island and surrounding areas. The purpose of this article is to be illustrative of how a typical mediation could proceed.
A couple that is interested in getting a mediated divorce can come to the mediator’s office for a half hour no fee consultation. The mediator will meet with the couple together as he or she is a neutral person. Although some mediators are experienced divorce lawyers, as the mediator, he/she is not acting as the lawyer for either party. In the initial consultation a mediator will describe the process and answer the general questions that the wife or husband may have.
If a couple is ready to begin the process after the half hour consultation, then they can usually start to work on a settlement of the issues right away. The first topic that is usually addressed is what the grounds for the divorce will be. More often than not, there is an immediate agreement to use the no fault ground that now exists in New York. All that is required for this ground is that either the husband or wife needs to be able to swear that the marriage has been irretrievably broken for at least six months. It is not the husband’s fault or the wife’s. One person will need to be the plaintiff and the other the defendant when the actual divorce is filed. Usually this is not a source of contention.