At Lawrence Law Office, we often see cases where people are going back to court to litigate changes in child custody, visitation and support orders. This can be the result of almost any change in either of the parent’s circumstances including relocation, increased or decreased earnings, a new relationship for one of the parents, alcohol or drug issues, work schedules or simply disagreements between the parties.
If you believe changes need to be made to an existing court order following a divorce you should consider mediation. Family law mediation allows the parties to facilitate a conversation and reach agreement – even on issues where there is deep disagreement and/or animosity. The goal of mediation is to provide a productive environment where genuine issues can be raised, and multiple options can be identified and evaluated.
Mediation usually resolves these differences in a much shorter timeframe, and at a significantly lower cost than going back to court and hashing things out in front of a judge. Mediation allows the parties to maintain a higher degree of control over the ultimate outcome, instead of having a third party (judge) impose a solution that may not be welcomed by either party. An effective mediator will also help the parties to develop better skills for managing future issues.
