Family Law Mediation

The Family Law Act place a heavy emphasis on mediation in parenting matters. Working out what is in the best interests of your child is often best achieved by the parents coming together and discussing what arrangements are best. At times the role of a solicitor is to give parents some common terms and best practice guidance. The aim though is for parents to come to a resolution together.

If parents cannot come to an agreement together then an option is to attend family dispute resolution. This is designed to help parents seek the professional assistance of a nationally accredited mediator who can work with you to achieve an outcome that is in the children’s best interests.

Mediation gives parents the ability to reach their own resolution. A national accredited family dispute resolution practitioner can then help guide parents to navigate the many aspects of a child’s life that need assistance. These range from who the child lives with to how overseas holidays work.

Parties may also prefer to organise their mediation so that their solicitor can be present. Victoria Legal Aid offers this service and there are also options available to do this privately.

This means that both parents, their respective solicitors and a mediator work together to try to negotiate an arrangement that is in the child’s best interests. This again deals with topics such as who the child lives with but has the added bonus of having your family lawyer there who can advise you on:

1. What arrangements usually work in circumstances similar to yours;
2. How a Court considers different issues; and
3. The cost to proceed to Court if mediation cannot be reached.

If agreement has been reached then you can confirm the agreement in a Parenting Plan or Consent Orders.

If you have a family law property dispute that you are unable to resolve then mediation is a possible avenue to embark upon. As with parenting mediation, a property mediation can result in you being able to make your own decision about how property is divided and also avoid legal costs of attending family court.

In Victoria if the asset pool is over $500,000 then a Court will likely order the parties to attend mediation. It is therefore advisable to try to mediate your dispute before going to Court, if possible.

A mediation allows both parties, their family lawyers and a mediator to try to reach a settlement of their property disputes. It is common that parties will exchange an Outline of Case document outlining their respective arguments so that the issues are well known.

If the parties don’t reach an agreement at mediation they can have their matter determined by the courts. This does not prevent the couple from having another mediation or resolving the matter before the court date.

Our family lawyers are skilled in negotiating at mediations and ensure that our clients are prepared and organised for their mediation. They are tough on vigorously pursuing entitlements and getting to a favourable settlement on the day, where possible.

To speak to a family lawyer about family law mediation call us on 1300 907 335 or complete an online enquiry form and we will be in contact with you promptly.