How to Choose a Divorce Mediator
Divorce is a legal process, so I believe that it’s usually best if the mediator is an attorney who has experience representing parties for divorce and dissolution for several reasons:
The law is complex, with many different possibilities. An attorney mediator will have the depth of experience to provide you with more options, better options, to help you craft a plan that is best for your situation.
The law is constantly changing. An attorney will be aware of these changes to ensure you have a solid agreement. Ohio attorneys are required to attend a minimum of twenty-four hours of continuing education a year so that we understand the nuances and changes in the law. If a mediator is not an attorney, they may not be aware of your rights. Many people who did not understand their rights prior to their dissolution, and only find out about them after the dissolution, are dissatisfied and want to make changes to the agreements. This is avoided when the mediator is an attorney.
An attorney has more experience in understanding what goes wrong with agreements after the divorce or dissolution. That knowledge help you to create a better agreement which will prevent future difficulties.
It is important to be comfortable with your mediator. I suggest you learn the following:
Find out how many cases they have mediated and over what time period. A more experienced mediator will have more ideas and insights to help you create a better plan.
Ask them about their mediation training. Besides the basic and divorce training, an experienced mediator will have had numerous trainings over the years to assist them in working with all different types of personalities, including high conflict personalities and personality disorders.
Find out if they have training as a transformative mediator. A mediator with transformative training will help you to have better long-term outcomes.
If you have children, choose an attorney mediator who has experience as a guardian ad litem, (GAL). A GAL is appointed by the court to do an investigation and to make recommendations to the court regarding custody and parenting schedules. As part of the investigation, the GAL speaks with the child at each parent’s house, talks to any mental health professionals who are involved, and talks with the school. A significant amount of training to understand the needs of children is necessary to be a GAL.