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Topics

• Child-Inclusive Mediation FAQ
• Courses FAQ
• Divorce
• MEDIATE FAQ
• Mediation and Arbitration
• Parent Coordinator FAQ
• Parenting Plans
• Property Division
• Support
• Voice Of The Child FAQ

Top Questions

• Do I have to be in the same room as the other person?

  No, you do not. We offer our services both online and in-person. We can have people in the same room, or in different rooms with the mediator going back and forth between them. Either way, you do not need to be in the same physical or virtual room as the other person to attend mediation.

• What is mediation/arbitration?

  Other than mediation and litigation, other methods that are available to settle the outstanding issues are neutral evaluation, arbitration and mediation/arbitration. Mediation/arbitration is a dispute resolution method that is a hybrid of mediation and arbitration. There is a debate as to the propriety of a professional acting as both a mediator (who does not give an opinion or decision) and an arbitrator (whose only role is to give a decision). Mediation/arbitration is prohibited by the Arbitration Act, however, the spouses may specifically waive that prohibition. In mediation/arbitration, the mediator/arbitrator first attempts to settle the issues through mediation. Mediation may turn into arbitration if the mediator/arbitrator determines that mediation has failed. The mediator/arbitrator then ignores all the information that had been exchanged in the mediation and hears the matter afresh as an arbitration. The mediator/arbitrator cannot mediate while he or she is arbitrating and cannot arbitrate while he or she is mediating.

• When can I ask for a divorce?

  As soon as one of the following three circumstances has occurred: the other spouse has committed adultery, the other spouse has committed cruelty, or the spouses have separated. As soon as one of these circumstances has occurred, a spouse can commence an application for divorce. If separation is used as the ground to obtain a divorce, the spouses need to have been separated for at least one year before a judge will grant a divorce order.

• Who will be my mediator?

  Your mediator will be assigned to you based on the information provided in your intake forms. All our mediators have multiple years of experience working with families and children to help our clients succeed.

• How long will on-site mediation take?

   Your intake meeting will last about one hour. The mediation will last between 1-3 hours depending on the circumstances.

• Will I have to share my pension?

  A spouse’s pension is treated the same as any other asset that a spouse accumulated during the marriage. That means the spouse with the pension gets credit for the value of the pension on the date of marriage, but will share with the other spouse the rise in the value of the pension during the marriage. The pension will need to be valuated by a professional to determine its value on the date of separation.