As family mediators, we are often regaled with stories of high conflict divorce cases. “They never could have mediated” is a common refrain we hear from well-meaning friends who share details of protracted divorce litigations and custody battles, each replete with extensive collateral damage, such as a retirement account liquidated to fund a litigation.
Revisiting Agreements After Unforeseen Changes Occur
The current political climate has encapsulated what we have longed recognized: that unpredictable—even outlier, low-probability events—happen.
DECEMBER 7, 2016. New York Law Journal.
In our last column, we discussed several strategies for addressing impasse in mediation: examining the conflict dynamic; using silence to allow parties time to consider the issues; exploring the parties’ motivation to mediate; shifting to a different topic, enabling time for further reflection; considering the smaller components of each issue; obtaining and analyzing more information; and having separate conversations with the parties.
By: Abby Tolchinsky and Ellie Wertheim
April 13, 2016
As of Jan. 25, 2016, divorcing parties may rely on new provisions in the Domestic Relations Law pertaining to post-divorce spousal support.1 For years, attorneys and judges have grappled with creating a standard of fairness upon which parties may rely that provides sufficient flexibility so that cases may be tailored to each family’s unique budgetary needs.
Study Offers Insight on Effectiveness of Strategies
Abby Tolchinsky and Ellie Wertheim, New York Law Journal
December 9, 2015
In 2014, the Administrative Office of the Courts in Maryland issued a groundbreaking study of mediation.