Role of Mediation in Brisbane Family Law Cases

Family law includes everything and anything concerning family matters, like divorce, child custody, and property settlement. It is essential to ensure that there is law and order in any family while discouraging bad habits that can harm another person.

For any case to reach a court hearing, it must first pass through the mediation process. Mediation can bring understanding between parties and resolve the issues. This makes it cost-effective and less stressful. Let us dive deep into understanding the meaning of mediation and how it is important in family law cases.

What is mediation and why is it important in Brisbane family law cases?

–          What is mediation?

Mediation involves getting representatives of both parties to sit down and discuss with a third neutral party, called a mediator, to try to resolve issues affecting their clients. The mediator’s main task is to take charge of the entire process, guiding the conversation and ensuring that everyone is heard fairly.  The mediator cannot take sides at any point of the process and ensure that they work together to come up with decisions that will be favourable to both parties. Mediation in family law cases mainly serves to decide child custody, property division and co-parenting after separation.

–          Why is mediation important in family law cases?

It is a requirement by law that cases to do with child custody, property division or co-parenting pass through a mediation process before reaching the court. Let us find out why this process is important in such cases:

Keeps control of the parties: in the mediation process, the parties involved in the disputes are the ones that decides the final outcome but, not the mediator or the judge. The mediator’s main obligation is to ensure that there is fairness in the hearing and they control the entire process.

Saves time and money: mediation usually takes less time and the process can be completed in one sitting if parties agree on one decision. It is also important to note that the mediation process is less expensive than compared to court hearings which can take years to resolve.

Reduces conflict and stress: family cases usually carry heavy emotions and going to court can make it even worse, since the court only focuses on evidence and facts to make their judgement. For mediation, each party gets a fair chance to freely open up and share their side of the story in a calm and respectful environment. The decisions made are purely from the disputing parties so there is no chance that one side will benefit more than the other.

Focuses on the best interests of children: when there is a dispute between two married couples, children are the ones that experience the maximum impact from their divorce or separation. However, the mediation process focuses mainly on children’s best interests, so the mediator will ensure that proper arrangements have been made to care for children. They ensure that parents chip in to ensure that children have shelter, education, food and other life requirements to lead stress-free lives.

To wind up…

Mediation is a crucial step in family disputes as it ensures that both parties come to an agreement on certain decisions that affect their family. The mediator ensures that both parties engage in meaningful conversations that can result in an understanding. Mediation saves both parties legal fees and other charges that they may encounter when they decide to take their cases to court. In the court, things can run very slowly since the judge wants to make a ruling based on the presented evidence and facts. Get sound legal advice from trusted family law experts in Brisbane.