In the realm of family law, it’s essential to familiarize yourself with the concept of mediation before court. While some may assume that family law cases inevitably lead to litigation, the truth is that a substantial number of divorce and child custody matters are resolved through mediation before proceeding to trial becomes necessary. Recognizing the significance of mediation and its pivotal role in your family law case is crucial. Therefore, let’s explore the basics of mediation and what to expect when engaging in this process before court proceedings.
What is mediation?
Mediation is a process whereby you and your attorney and your spouse and their attorney attend a formal negotiation session with a neutral, third-party lawyer. That third-party attorney will attempt to help you and your spouse mediate any outstanding issues in your case. Mediation can occur at the beginning of a divorce case and will likely happen at the end. The subject matter covered in each mediation session can be different, but what is achieved in Earlier mediation will impact the ultimate settlements in final orders mediation.
Mediation is a tried and true alternative dispute resolution method employed by civil attorneys of all kinds. If you have ever been involved in a personal injury case, contract dispute, or any other civil legal matter, you may have been involved in mediation as well. While the stakes are high in mediation, there is not a level of pressure that parties typically feel when they go to court. Mediation is essential but not pressure-packed because you are not sitting before a judge and are not in an uncomfortable environment like a family courtroom.
I find it helpful in mediation because it allows you, as the client, to see how an attorney processes information in a family law case. I think this is important because as you sit with your attorney and another attorney helping you mediate your case, you can begin to see what an attorney looks for in settlement negotiations. What you believed to be reasonable in the context of a claim may end up not being suitable to expect at all, given your specific circumstances.
What are the two different types of mediation within a Texas divorce case?
As I mentioned a moment ago, there are two phases of a divorce case in Texas. This phase encompasses most of your divorce until its conclusion. Temporary orders are the marching orders for you and your family during your divorce. This will govern a temporary structure for You and your family as far as Visitation with your children, child support, quick spousal support in a division of which parents will pay which bills during the divorce.
Temporary Orders Mediation
In a family law case, temporary orders help a family adjust to living separately from one another. People commonly underestimate the transition to living in separate households. However, I would caution you on this ahead of time. For one, a transition comes with living in separate households and having to maintain those two households while adjusting to a shared visitation schedule with the kids.
Temporary orders also play a crucial role because they often set a precedent for final orders in many divorce cases. For example, if you receive the right to determine your children’s primary residence in temporary orders, you have a strong chance of retaining that right in final rulings. Judges typically hesitate to make significant changes at the end of a case if the arrangements have been working well throughout the majority of the divorce.
This should tell you that it is essential to prepare and negotiate well for temporary orders because it is sometimes difficult to change those orders in significant ways towards the end of your divorce. Do not assume that you will be able to negotiate harder in the final orders phase than in the temporary ones. Even how you divide household bills during the divorce can influence the division of property in the final orders phase. Take nothing for granted and prepare well for temporary orders negotiations—more on that in a bit.
Final orders mediation
Final orders mediation is the 2nd of the two sessions, typical in a Texas divorce. Last orders mediation looks and feels like temporary orders mediation, but the subject matter you will discuss is different in one primary regard. That significant difference between temporary orders mediation and final orders mediation is that your marital estate will be divided between you and your spouse in the last orders mediation. This means that you and your attorney must have a plan for how you want to divide your community estate. We will discuss in a moment how to prepare for final orders mediation.
Otherwise, final orders mediation covers much of the same material as temporary orders mediation regarding child custody and conservatorships. You and your spouse used the divorce case as a testing ground to see how well you negotiated for orders that worked during the case. If they have worked well, you all may want to extend those temporary orders and make the final.
However, if circumstances have changed or viewpoints on particular issues have changed, you can change how you negotiate. If you cannot make the changes to your temporary orders that you want for final orders purposes, your option would be to go to trial and see what a judge has to say on that issue.
Preparing for Mediation and How to Learn From This Process
As I’ve said before on this blog, information is power. Knowledge is power. Taking that information in knowledge and translating it into positive results for you and your family is indeed even more powerful. With that said, I talked to clients about looking at mediation as the ultimate time for you to gain knowledge and information about the divorce process in your case specifically.
You can watch YouTube videos, speak to your attorney, and talk to other people in your community about divorce. However, mediation is a real-world learning session for you to engage in fully.
In this way, mediation can kind of act like an informal law school course on dispute resolution in the world of Texas family law. For mediation to be especially helpful to you and your spouse, it is necessary to understand and prepare for mediation.
Strategizing for Mediation Before Court: The Preparation Phase
That is what I would like to discuss with you next. How best can you and your attorney prepare for mediation if you are at the temporary order space of your case or a final orders phase. Let’s go in order and talk about temporary orders mediation first. Preparing for temporary orders mediation can seem like trying to drink water from a firehouse.
I would begin to prepare for mediation for temporary orders before your divorce is even filed. You can start by planning out what you envisioned as a reasonable visitation schedule for you and your spouse to share with your children.
Financial Reality Check: Assessing Your Living Circumstances
Next, I would take a long natural look at your bills and figure out what your living circumstances are going to be with your spouse for the next few months. Much of the work will have been done for you for final orders mediation about child custody and conservatorships issues.
You and your attorney should review how custody issues have gone this far in your divorce and whether or not you need to make any changes regarding custody or conservatorships for final orders.
Much of the time, your focus on final orders mediation will divide up your community estate. To do that, you need to determine what property belongs in the community estate and its value and how you see that property being divided in the divorce.
Final Thoughts
In summary, parents opt for mediation before resorting to court proceedings because mediation is effective. Though I don’t have specific statistics on hand, I would estimate that over 90% of Texas divorce and child custody cases are resolved through mediation before litigation becomes necessary. Given this high success rate, it’s no surprise that most family courts mandate at least one mediation session before proceeding to trial.
My advice is to prioritize preparation with your attorney. While the outcome of mediation can be unpredictable, inadequate preparation may lead to unfavorable results. Approach mediation as a serious opportunity to negotiate and settle your case, ensuring the best outcome for you and your family.
Questions about Texas family law? Contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan
if you have any questions about the material presented to you today in our blog post, please do not hesitate to contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan. Our licensed family law attorneys offer free of charge consultations six days a week in person, via video, and over the phone. These consultations are an excellent opportunity to learn more about Texas family law and how the law impacts you and your family, given your current circumstances.
Other Related Articles
- Comparing Divorce Mediation Costs to Litigation Expenses
- Exploring Divorce Mediation in Texas: What to Expect and How to Prepare
- Divorce Mediation: Benefits and Considerations
- Can you negotiate child support during mediation?
- Mediation Essentials for Divorce and Child Custody cases in Texas
- 5 Things to Do to Prepare your Texas Divorce Case for Mediation
- Family Law Cases in Texas: Mediation
- Mediation and its impact on your Texas Child Custody Case
- Collaborative Law: A Modern Approach to Child Custody Disputes in Texas
- Why doesn’t mediation always work?
Bryan Fagan, a native of Atascocita, Texas, is a dedicated family law attorney inspired by John Grisham’s “The Pelican Brief.” He is the first lawyer in his family, which includes two adopted brothers. Bryan’s commitment to family is personal and professional; he cared for his grandmother with Alzheimer’s while completing his degree and attended the South Texas College of Law at night.
Married with three children, Bryan’s personal experiences enrich his understanding of family dynamics, which is central to his legal practice. He specializes in family law, offering innovative and efficient legal services. A certified member of the College of the State Bar of Texas, Bryan is part of an elite group of legal professionals committed to ongoing education and high-level expertise.
His legal practice covers divorce, custody disputes, property disputes, adoption, paternity, and mediation. Bryan is also experienced in drafting marital property agreements. He leads a team dedicated to complex family law cases and protecting families from false CPS allegations.
Based in Houston, Bryan is active in the Houston Family Law Sector of the Houston Bar Association and various family law groups in Texas. His deep understanding of family values and his professional dedication make him a compassionate advocate for families navigating Texas family law.
