Mediation
Colorado Mediation Services
Mediation is a form of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in which a neutral professional assists parties in resolving disputed issues by facilitating agreements without advocating for either side. Mediation is often utilized in the context of family law and domestic relations cases to potentially avoid having a judge decide complicated financial and parenting issues that are generally best decided by the parties themselves. The mediator will meet with the parties together or sometimes separately and identify the issues that need to be resolved as part of the particular legal proceeding. The mediator will then work with the parties to explore options for settlement that Although many mediators are attorneys by training, the mediator cannot provide legal advice to either party and cannot assist either person with strategies against the other; the mediator can instead use their knowledge of the law to facilitate an agreement that is consistent with the law on a particular matter.
Amy has been trained as a mediator for over 12 years. She has helped numerous couples and individuals reach positive resolutions outside of the court process, preserving both financial resources and good will between the parties.
Types of Mediation Offered
Divorce Mediation: Amy provides couples seeking to mediate their divorce or legal separation with a full service mediation process that includes coordinating the exchange of financial disclosures between spouses, review of financial disclosures and preparation of court forms, in-person or video mediation meetings to facilitate a resolution of all issues required for divorce or legal separation, and preparation of final settlement documents for submission to court. This process can be done on your timeframe without being bound by court deadlines or having to prepare for a contested hearing.
Court-Ordered & Post-Decree Mediation: In cases where a hearing has been set or the matter has been pending for some time, mediation is required prior to a judge hearing the contested issues at a trial. For court-ordered mediation couples may be represented by their attorneys who will attempt to negotiate a settlement with the mediator as neutral facilitator, however, many parties participate in mediation without an attorney present. With the assistance of a strong mediator, many challenging cases are settled, often a few weeks or less before a contested hearing.
Amy has the perspective of both serving as a mediator as well as representing clients in many court-ordered mediations. She understands how to incrementally narrow issues in dispute, and when/how to encourage both sides to consider the positions and perspectives of the opposing party in the interest of settlement.Procedural Support: When couples have reached agreements themselves they may wish to have an attorney-mediator review their court forms and agreements prior to submitting them to the court. With this option, Amy will not review the parties’ financial disclosures or prepare the documents for filing with the court but she can meet with the couple to review what they have prepared and can suggest revisions and confirm whether the agreements are likely to be accepted by the court.
