Long Island Family Law and Mediation Blog
From an emotional perspective, the end of any relationship can be difficult. But when you decide to end your marriage, the chances are you’ll have a lot of additional challenges to think about – from how assets and debts should be distributed, to what you’re going to do about parenting time, child custody, or even maintenance payments.
While couples in St Lawrence County can litigate and ask the courts of New York to help them decide their own fates, many prefer to retain some level of control over what happens at the end of their marriage. That’s where mediation comes in, allowing couples to discuss their options, come to mutually acceptable agreements, and then present them to the courts to get an uncontested divorce. Without the Judge telling them what it’s going to be.
For many couples, divorce mediation offers an appealing alternative to standard litigation – not just because it offers more decision-making opportunities, but also because it can help to reduce the emotional toll of the divorce process, and help preserve an amicable relationship between parties.
Unfortunately, while there are many divorce mediators that offer their services to St. Lawrence County residents, making the right choice on who to work with can be difficult when you’re restricted to only seeking out local support. That’s where virtual divorce mediation options come in.
The Evolution of Virtual Mediation in St. Lawrence County
Named after the beautiful Saint Lawrence River, St Lawrence County is perhaps the largest county in New York by area – home to thousands of couples, families, and individuals alike. The region is well-known for its stunning landscapes, from the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains to the rolling farmland around Canton and Gouverneur, and the scenic riverside cities like Ogdensburg.
Just like any region, however, St Lawrence County is no stranger to the stresses and challenges of divorce proceedings. For years, this county has supported divorce mediation as an alternative dispute resolution method, popular among those who prefer to avoid the strain of traditional litigation.
Unlike litigation, which relies on adversarial positions and court-imposed rulings, mediation allows couples to collaborate on outcomes. This means couples can maintain more control over divorce outcomes, avoid unnecessary stress, and even resolve issues faster and more cost-effectively than they would if they were reliant entirely on the courts.
However, while St. Lawrence county is home to some divorce mediators, not everyone is the right fit for each couple. This divorce mediator tries to offer legal knowledge, communication skills, and experience to attempt to be more appealing to every couple, if possible. Virtual divorce mediation services, offered by professionals like myself through channels like Zoom, give clients more freedom to choose the mediator best suited to their needs.
What’s more, with virtual mediation, couples benefit from the convenience of being able to host mediation sessions from the comfort of their own home, without the need for expensive travel.
Why St. Lawrence Couples Turn to Me for Divorce Mediation
In the past, couples based in St. Lawrence may not have had a realistic option to consider working with me as their divorce mediator, due to the fact that my office is located in Jericho, New York, Nassau County, New York. Now, thanks to virtual mediation solutions, I can more easily offer convenient mediation services to couples all throughout New York and Long Island, offering couples unique benefits such as:
- Legal Experience: Mediators don’t all need to be licensed attorneys or lawyers to offer their services to couples navigating divorce – although they should have a basic knowledge of divorce and family law. However, the experience I’ve gained throughout more than two decades working as a family lawyer and divorce attorney gives me some unique insights. I can help my clients more effectively understand and overcome challenges related to separation agreements, custody claims, and more. Besides being a mediator I still litigate and negotiate (depending on what role I am hired to fulfill). This keeps me abreast of how things are handled in the court which I can bring to the mediation table.
- Comprehensive Support: Beyond working as a divorce mediator, if I am not working as the mediator for the couple, I can offer wide range of supportive services. I can act as a dedicated attorney for one party, or a review attorney for someone working with another mediator. I can also offer insights as a consultant, and work collaboratively with other legal professionals on court cases.
- Flexibility: Ever since I began offering divorce mediation as a service to my clients, building on my services as a traditional attorney, I’ve focused on flexibility. I give my clients the freedom to fine-tune their experience, focusing on entirely in-person or virtual sessions, or a combination of both – based on their specific needs.
I’ve seen first-hand how my support as a traditional or virtual mediator can benefit countless clients, giving them the insight, and guidance they need to overcome issues faster, and achieve the best possible outcomes as they explore the next stage in their lives.
Flexible, Professional Mediation for All Clients
Throughout the majority of my career, I’ve constantly searched for ways to make the divorce process less painful, and demanding for my clients. I discovered my passion for family law during the early days of my career, when I was working with the Assigned Panel of Suffolk County.
After launching my own family law office, initially in Suffolk County, then in Nassau County, I began experimenting with divorce mediation, as a potential alternative for those keen to avoid the headaches of traditional litigation. I saw an excellent opportunity to use mediation to empower my clients to take a different approach to navigating the end of their marriage, and initially offered mediation services to local clients.
During the pandemic, however, I discovered the benefits of platforms like Zoom to deliver mediation services remotely to my clients, and have since expanded my services to support couples throughout New York. Today, I deliver the same level of personalized, customizable services to couples accessing both virtual, and in-person mediation, drawing on a range of techniques.
For example, my experience in the family law space means I can easily use evaluative mediation strategies to assist my clients in understanding the challenges they may face when sharing agreements with the courts, and help them reach mutually beneficial decisions.
Facilitative mediation techniques, on the other hand, help me to drive beneficial discussions forward, encouraging collaboration and understanding between couples, and ensuring concerns and issues can quickly, and easily be addressed. Strategies like open-ended questioning can even help couples to express themselves more effectively during discussions, and understand the priorities of their spouse.
To ensure that both parties during a mediation session get the same opportunity to clearly outline their concerns and priorities, I also use interest-based negotiation techniques, focusing on helping each client feel respected, heard, and understood throughout the process.
Virtual Mediation Sessions Made Simple
Throughout a lengthy and diverse career, I’ve seen just how valuable divorce mediation can be, for couples that want to reduce costs or stress, streamline the path to the next step in their respective journeys, or simply retain elements of a positive relationship with an ex-spouse. However, I’ve also seen how difficult it can be for couples to choose the right mediator, when their options are limited based on their location.
My virtual mediation services for St. Lawrence County residents ensure every couple has the opportunity to explore the benefits of mediation with the professional of their choice. If you believe that mediation could be the best next step forward for you and your soon-to-be-ex partner, reach out to my team today.
You can contact me via the form on this website, or over the phone to arrange a simple initial consultation, with your partner, to determine whether virtual mediation might be a good choice for you. I look forward to hearing from you.