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Affordable
Less stressful
Financial and parenting solutions

Benefits of Mediation

“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.”
​—Socrates

Reduced tension, hostility and stress

In the typical adversarial procedure for getting a divorce, called “litigation,” each spouse retains an attorney who is engaged to advocate specifically for his/her client. This approach can alienate spouses from each other, increase hostility, have harmful effects on children and cost a great deal in legal fees. By contrast, the calm and safety fostered through the process of divorce mediation create an atmosphere of respect, civility and empowerment. ​

Significantly less expense than litigation

Instead of paying two attorneys to negotiate an agreement or take the divorce to court, a couple can share in the cost of a single mediator, at rates far below those charged by attorneys. The total cost of a mediated divorce is usually significantly less than an attorney-negotiated, collaborative or litigated divorce.

Less time than traditional divorce negotiations

The time required to complete a mediated divorce is customized for each couple based on their availability to meet and the time needed to make decisions/reach agreements. You are not at the mercy of attorneys or court schedules.

More control

You make your own decisions, instead of decisions being made for you and your children by judges and attorneys who don’t really know you. Findings show that, when both spouses agree on a decision, they are more likely to follow through, resulting in a more durable outcome.

Flexibility and creativity

Mediation allows for creative decision making that would not be possible in a court-based divorce litigation process.

Better long-term results for children

A mediated divorce process reduces stress on all members of the family. You are supported to maintain and strengthen your parenting relationship, which in turn supports the welfare of your children. Mediation models a civil and respectful dialogue that sets a positive example for children.
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Study finds divorce mediation offers more peaceful alternative

​“And…mediated divorces…have been found to achieve higher settlement rates than litigation.”
 
"Mediation: Negotiating a More Satisfactory Divorce”  [November 18, 2018, Daily Blog, Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation] reports that researcher Rachid Baitar of the Catholic University of Leuven and Ghent University in Belgium and his colleagues questioned, “How does the quality of divorce agreements facilitated by mediators compare with that of agreements obtained through lawyers?”
 
The study: 469 divorcing individuals in Belgium, about half reporting a high level of conflict with their spouse. 30 percent of participants worked with a mediator in reaching agreement, the other 70 percent with a lawyer.
 
The outcome: “…participants engaged in mediation reported that they reached higher quality agreements, as measured by how tailored, fair, comprehensive, and clear the agreement was….Overall, the results suggest that couples would be wise to be aided by professionals who believe that reducing conflict and encouraging an open dialogue are more likely to promote a satisfactory divorce than a straightforward competitive approach would.”
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Read the full article.
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​Clients appreciate David Louis’ services​

“David helped us get through the difficult process of figuring out our finances in a straightforward, respectful and understated way. He made sure that we understood the implications of the issues, with the result being that I feel confident that we have a solid agreement. He was prompt in scheduling and followed through quickly.”