New Jersey has taken unusual steps in recent years to reduce the pressure on the court system. One of the most upsetting for many unhappily married couples is the stay placed on divorces in Passaic and Essex Counties. For couples with marital homes in either county, obtaining a divorce may not be an option for the foreseeable future.
Thankfully, mediation is an option even when divorce is not. Mediation allows you and your spouse to handle all of the important decisions on your own. The court won’t have to review your records, consider your family circumstances or spend any resources on your divorce process. Mediation allows for non-contested and quick divorces, even in places where traditional divorces are not an option.
You don’t have to be friends anymore to still work together
If you want a divorce, chances are good that you and your spouse no longer work well together as a unit. You may have difficulties talking calmly, without things devolving into a shouting match. Thankfully, mediation doesn’t require that you like one another, only that you’re willing to work together to find a common solution for ending your marriage. New Jersey accepts mediation as a legal and binding alternative to court resolution.
In cases where there is severe discord, you don’t even need to speak directly with your spouse. Instead, you can discuss your needs and hopes with your attorney and the mediator in one room, while your spouse and his or her attorney wait in another. After hearing your offer or ideas, the mediator can then relay that to your spouse. Negotiations can take place without you even seeing one another if need be.
Mediation can help you side-step the stay on divorces
One of the reason that the courts are not hearing divorce cases is how long and expensive these cases are, for both the families involved and the state. A lot of resources are used to arbitrate disagreements between spouses about assets, child custody and other important considerations in a divorce.
Mediation takes all of the pressure off the court systems. You come to the courts with already signed and agreed-upon divorce terms. The courts need only verify the legality of the terms and ensure that state requirements are met. Mediation can help you start and finish a divorce before the counties ever lift their stay on hearing these cases.
Mediation keeps your personal information out of court
One of the most difficult things about a divorce may be the airing of grievances in court. From bad behavior to chemical dependence and infidelity, everything becomes a matter of public record. With mediation, you can avoid having the details of your marriage, your assets, your family and your divorce made public.