Mediation has become a popular alternative to litigating a divorce in court. Aside from generally being less expensive and lengthy, mediation allows divorcing couples to work out their own divorce agreements, under the guidance of a trained mediator.
If you and your spouse are considering mediation for your divorce, you can each retain your own legal counsel. You can also (separately or together) retain tax, financial and other professionals to advise you.
However, mediation does typically involve more work for the divorcing spouses than having everything handled by their attorneys. That includes not just gathering financial and other records, which you’d have to do in any type of divorce. You may need to do more of the analysis and research yourself to determine what kind of settlements to seek.
Documents for your financial disclosure
Both spouses need to fully and accurately disclose all of their assets and debts. That means you need to have things like:
- Tax returns
- Income documentation (W-2s and 1099s)
- Retirement plan and pension statements
- Loan and other debt information
- Estate plan documents
Your mediator will likely give you a complete list of documents to collect.
Considerations for spousal support
Whether you’re seeking spousal support (alimony) or your spouse is, it’s important to know how it’s determined under state law. That will depend on things like:
- The duration of the marriage
- Both spouses’ income and other assets
- Both spouses’ ability to work and earning potential
- The standard of living during the marriage
If you’re seeking alimony, it’s important to understand the available types and which is most appropriate for your needs.
Child custody and support
Typically, physical custody is determined before child support is discussed. Parents who choose mediation generally don’t have serious disagreements over how custody will be shared. Mediation is a good environment to work out a custody agreement and parenting plan that works well for everyone.
Child support is typically paid by the parent who has the child for less time. If your time is going to be more or less 50-50, each parent’s income will likely be more of a consideration. Either way, you should be prepared to determine the expenses that go into raising your child(ren).
The better prepared you are for divorce mediation, the more efficiently you can go through it and the better your chances are of getting agreements that work well for you. As noted, you can have your own legal and other professional guidance to help you make the most of mediation.