Long Island Family Law and Mediation Blog
We’ve come a long way from the days when the only way to end a marriage was to spend hours, weeks, or months presenting cases in court. As an experienced family law attorney myself, I know there are always situations where the traditional “litigation” approach still makes the most sense. But for many couples across New York, alternative dispute resolution methods are often a lot more appealing. Mediation, for instance, doesn’t completely eliminate the stress of divorce, but it is, for many, a superior process.
Divorce mediation gives couples an option to take a more collaborative approach, one that can help them to preserve amicable relationships, avoid hefty fees, and even maintain some control over what happens next in their separate lives. The problem in the past, is that although the New York courts support mediation, couples haven’t always had the most choice when it comes to deciding who they want to work with on their case.
Location rather than “true fit” usually formed the basis of most decisions. After all, no-one wants to travel for hours every time they need to attend a face-to-face mediation session. The good news is that mediation services are evolving. Virtual mediation sessions skyrocketed in popularity during the pandemic, and have continued to provide Chemung county couples with more freedom ever since. Continue reading ›
Ask anyone who has been through it, and they’ll tell you nothing can ever make divorce “easy”. Even if you and your partner are happy to be moving in separate directions, ending a marriage takes a toll. But the process used to be a lot tougher. Once, the only path forward was standard litigation or negotiations between parties and/or lawyers. Then, mediation made its way into the matrimonial and family law landscape, offering a new method of dispute resolution.
Virtual Divorce Mediation in Steuben County: The Low-Stress Alternative to Litigation
Litigation isn’t the only way to approach divorce in New York. In fact, many couples find that they prefer alternative dispute resolution options – particularly if they’re trying to avoid stressful courtroom appearances, or maintain amicable relationships for the sake of their children.
Getting separated or divorced is an emotionally charged experience to say the least. It can seem like an incredibly complicated process, but working with the right professionals can make it as smooth as possible. Ending a marriage, whether it’s an amicable split or not – creates a lot of headaches – from figuring out how you’re going to divide assets, to determining parenting time strategies.
From an emotional perspective, the end of any relationship can be difficult. But when you decide to end your marriage, the chances are you’ll have a lot of additional challenges to think about – from how assets and debts should be distributed, to what you’re going to do about parenting time, child custody, or even maintenance payments.
When it comes to ending a marriage, couples often face a daunting array of choices, from navigating litigation to negotiating settlements. As a practitioner in matrimonial law, I engage in all facets of this process—litigation, negotiation, mediation, and even collaborative legal methods. Of these, negotiating or mediating a Separation Agreement before filing for divorce can often provide the most straightforward path forward. Here’s why.
For couples all across New York, and Long Island, divorce mediation services have emerged as a valuable, effective alternative to traditional litigation processes.
The end of a marriage is difficult for any couple to navigate. Whether you’ve spent months or years with your partner, untangling your life, working out child custody, parenting time, child support, maintenance (alimony) and assets from theirs can be extremely complex. Often, the first step in streamlining the process, is choosing the right strategy.
Divorce is always a complex process, but sometimes having a certain level of control over how you approach the journey can make it a lot simpler to manage. For some couples, traditional litigation procedures may be the best, and most effective way to sever the ties created by a marriage.