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Divorce Mediation is a Waste of Time

From the True North Empire Blog by Belinda Jokinen

I’ve heard it so many times.   My clients say that mediation won’t work for them.  The most common reason they give is that the other party (ie: {exes} spouse or significant other) won’t agree to anything reasonable.  The second most common reason given is that they will only do something if forced to by a Judge. Both are absolutely right.

****Of course we won’t agree to anything “reasonable”.  “Reasonable” went out the window when they became so difficult to work with.  We want everything we have worked for, and we deserve it.  Why would we agree to throw it all away to someone who isn’t even qualified to be on our team any more? How could we be expected to do that? Who in their right mind would do that willingly?

We worked hard.  It doesn’t matter if it was a relationship that lasted one year or 25 years.  We worked hard and we sacrificed for the sake of the team we were building.  And now that we are finally freeing ourselves of the baggage of that team mate who just didn’t make the cut; you want me to agree to GIVE them some of the things we worked together for?!?! Willingly? Not in this lifetime.  Not unless you can compensate me for everything that’s being taken.****

Now while that isn’t exactly a direct quote from any one client, it is a message that nearly every client feels at one point or another. And who could blame them?

The truth is that both parties (ie: people- when your life becomes a court case you get labeled as “parties”) absolutely deserve 80% or more of what they’ve worked together for and no matter how hard you fight, half of 100% will never be the 80% you deserve.  Don’t get me wrong, there is a ready and willing litigation system available to help you fight, and make the decisions for you. But if you would rather decide for yourself what exactly you are willing to go without (and become responsible for); then mediation gives you the opportunity to think about it, talk about it, research it, think about it some more, and when you’re sure you are ready- decide on it.

Nothing is 50/50.  Nothing is fair.  The whole thing isn’t fair and nobody likes it.  But it’s happening.  There’s RCW’s and extensive official opinions written from people (whom you will never meet), that outline what is equitable in your exact situation.  But only you know what you want and why.

One of the most common epiphanies to occur in my office is the logistics of what we think we want.  We put our foot down and WILL NOT settle for {XYZ}!!! But then when we go home and look at the new place we just moved into, we realize that it has a different layout than where we moved from. Half the furniture we were demanding won’t really fit, and the stuff we threatened to sell on craigslist is perfect for the new place (yes this happens a lot).  Or even that we will not under any circumstances give up Wednesday dinner with the kids, but when we think about it, we get off work early on Fridays so maybe it would actually be better to get the kids at 3 instead of 6 and skip Wednesday (this actually happens even more than the furniture mess).  The point here is that it takes time, and many conversations to figure some of these things out. And it should.  You need to think about your schedule, your new living arrangement, your needs, your wants, and your future.

What you don’t need to think about is what you can get away with, or what you are entitled to.  You are entitled to things that don’t exist anymore and fighting over them won’t make them available. Taking something just to compensate what you can’t get won’t fill the void either.

You need resolve. You need to move on. You need mediation.

                        author

Belinda Jokinen

Member on the Spokane County Bar Association Family Law Mediators Roster Speaker at the "No B.S. Divorce" Mediation training Expert on Mediation for Head Start Programs Policy Council (March 2012) Teacher of Business Negotiation for Entrepreneurs  Over 15 years work experience in the legal system Certified Paralegal Registered with the… MORE >

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