A Neutral Third Party For Your Mediation Needs
What is mediation?
Mediation, in a divorce or family law context, refers to a meeting or meetings that are conducted by a neutral, trained third party at which typically verbal, face-to-face negotiations between two people take place with the aim of reaching a compromise to resolve their conflict(s). Or sometimes the neutral mediator shuttles between two different rooms in which each party is kept separate during the negotiations if necessary. Mediation is a popular form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR). The mediator’s job is to help identify the precise issues involved in the conflict, help focus the negotiation on the issues in a positive, neutral and goal-oriented manner and, ultimately, help the parties compromise and reach an agreement. The mediator is not a substitute for a psychologist or attorney. A mediator is not allowed to render his or her professional opinion in the mediation even though he or she may also be a psychologist or an attorney. The parties should consult with his or her attorney before, during and after mediation in order to more clearly understand the issues involved in the particular conflict and learn the reasonable options or parameters within which a mediated resolution can be achieved. A court-ordered mediation process is intended to be an aid to the family court system. If successful, it can reduce the court time consumed by parties to a conflict. In the case of mandatory mediation of parenting conflicts, which is required by Illinois law in all parenting conflicts, mediation may actually eliminate the need to consume any court time at all on a particular issue. The courts will order parties to attend mediation conducted by an attorney trained in mediation and approved by the county so that at least the mediator has an understanding of the laws involved with the issues.
Private mediation may take place before either party even files for divorce in an attempt to minimize the time that divorce and or custody proceedings will take or it may take place during the litigation process, as the parties may agree, for issues that do not require mandatory mediation. In all cases, mediation can help save money by reducing litigation costs.
Attorney Cellucci has mediation training and has been conducting mediation privately and court-ordered for parties who reside in Naperville and many more cities and towns across the four counties of DuPage, Will, Kendall and Kane.