Divorce Mediation: Co-Mediating Divorces and Parenting Plans
I am fortunate to co-mediate divorces, parenting plans and parenting disputes with John Duda, M.F.T., a Burlingame and Palo Alto marriage and couples therapist. John is a well-respected therapist on the peninsula south of San Francisco. He is a compassionate and wonderfully collaborative conflict resolution professional.
Having two mediators listen to couples, reflect back their viewpoints, surface their underlying interests and empathize with their stories can be quite helpful to couples in conflict. It can also help reduce the emotion in negotiation and hopefully reduce the chance of impasse in mediation.
Here are some advantages we see to mediation of divorce and parenting conflicts:
Confidentiality. Mediation sessions are confidential.
Control. The parties retain control of the process. The outcome is not handed over to a stranger (the judge).
Realism. The parties can work out terms of an agreement that can be realistically met.
Savings. The parties will save time and legal fees.
Convenience. The parties schedule mediation sessions at mutually agreeable times.
Less acrimony. Mediation is more cooperative and collaborative.
It works! Mediation works because the parties themselves have fashioned the Marital Settlement Agreement and they therefore commit to stand by it.
Thanks, John, for the all of skill you bring to the mediation room. It is a pleasure to work with you.
We have divorce mediation offices in San Francisco, Burlingame and Palo Alto. I also am a Parenting Coordinator.