New York Mediation Partners LLC

Mediation House Calls For Divorcing Couples (1/19/09)

Most people don't have piles of money to burn....especially when they are getting divorced! 

Working Together after Divorce – The Mediated Road to Success (1/06/09)
Rikk Larsen, Blair Trippe
The world of divorce is a place with an infinite number of stories that play out as a short list of common themes. The biggies: the well being of the children, how to divide assets, who gets the marital home and the complications of a parenting plan. We also know that divorces are rarely the end of the relationship in the sense that once they are final you never have, or need to have, contact with the other party again. 

Holidays are a busy, stressful time of the year whether you are in the process of getting divorced or not….so why add stress by bringing up taxes? Because taking a little time to do tax planning may save you substantial tax dollars! 

Do you want your children to thrive after divorce? First, learn to communicate respectfully and stop saying negative things about the other parent...at least when the children can hear. Keep your children are out of the middle and take steps to prevent parental alienation. Mediation can help. 

Clare Dalton, Nancy Ver Steegh
In February of 2007 the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges and the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts brought together a working group of thirty-seven experienced practitioners and researchers to identify and explore conceptual and practical tensions that have hampered effective work with families in which domestic violence has been identified or alleged. Five central sets of issues were raised at the conference and are discussed in this report. These include the following: differentiation among families experiencing domestic violence; screening and triage; participation by families in various processes and services; appropriate outcomes for children; and family court roles and resources. The report emphasizes the need for continued multidisciplinary collaboration in order to better serve families affected by domestic violence and it includes an appendix of consensus points as well as suggestions for formation of ongoing work groups. 

Divorce litigation, especially when there is contested custody, is rarely a straightforward negotiation process. Issues of divorce and custody can be negotiated out of court when certain conditions are present to move the couple to resolution of the issues. Mediated settlements are increasingly popular with both divorcing spouses and the judicial system. However, couples who cannot communicate with one another, and who have engaged in behavior that is threatening, coercive, manipulative and deceptive are usually not in a position to negotiate a settlement with each other. This essay suggests a model that allows a couple to attempt to negotiate a custody agreement taking into consideration the needs of the children and spouses for safety, expediency and firmness in the decision-making process.

As reported in the latest issue of NJAPM’s quarterly newsletter, “Family Law Attorneys Must Tell Clients About CDR” by William H. Donahue, Jr., Esq., the New Jersey Court rules were amended to require attorneys to tell their clients about CDR. New Jersey uses the term “CDR” for Complementary Dispute Resolution instead of “ADR” under the belief that mediation, arbitration and other non-judicial conflict resolution tools should complement the judicial process not be viewed as alternatives to ... 

The topic of same-sex marriage has recently become a major “hot-button” issue for policymakers and judicial circuits at the local, state, and national levels. While the determination of procedure has remained in the domain of legislatures and courthouses, same-sex couples have continued to create long-term relationships that have resulted in intertwined lives. Consequently, there has also been an increasing need for assistance and direction for couples during same-sex partnership dissolutions. 

When looking at the multitude of contexts where mediation is now being utilized, divorce mediation stands out as one of the fastest growing fields. The courts have decided to place an emphasis on providing couples with the opportunity to fashion their own agreement, rather than asking judges to deduce acceptable terms.