Mediation is a form of alternative dispute resolution that allows you and your spouse to agree on the terms of your divorce without litigating it in court. It offers you significant benefits in terms of time and money savings. It also frees up judges to address matters that require litigation.
Typically, you and your spouse can decide privately to mediate your divorce rather than take it to court. However, according to NJ.com, there are also circumstances in which the court can order mediation.
Trouble finalizing financial aspects of a divorce
The court is willing to give you some time, approximately six to nine months, to finalize the financial aspects of your divorce. However, if you have not reached an agreement by that point, the court may require you and your spouse to participate in mandatory economic mediation.
While you and your spouse are responsible for paying the expenses associated with mediation, this mandatory program can prevent you from having to go to court, which would be even more costly.
Inability to come to a parenting time agreement
Parenting time refers to the amount of time that you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse each spend with your children. If you and your spouse cannot come to an agreement about parenting time, the court may order you to go to mediation to figure it out.
Mediation can offer you many benefits besides saving time and money. For example, it requires less information to become a part of the public record, and the proceedings themselves are completely confidential.