Divorce Mediation Checklist

New Jersey Divorce Mediation Checklist & Tips

The process of a divorce can be extremely stressful for you and your family. It’s important to properly prepare for divorce mediation and know what to expect. Choosing mediation is an excellent first step towards making your divorce run as smoothly as possible. Below is a divorce mediation checklist of helpful tips to keep in mind as well.

Divorce and Separation Mediation Tips

1. Hire a skilled mediator

Hiring the right divorce mediator is the most important step in the process. It’s crucial to find someone you can trust and who will guide you through the process. Many people think that all mediators are the same, and to just find the one with the lowest fees. You will need someone who is able to resolve the complex issues at hand, which requires a lot of expertise, experience, and knowledge.

2. Actively participate in the divorce mediation process

Mediation is a voluntary process, and will not be successful if you or your spouse refuses to actively participate. It’s important for both parties to cooperate and work together, and if one isn’t doing so, it will make the process more difficult than it should be. In order for the mediation process to work, both must be active participants.

3. Always be willing to compromise

Sometimes this step can be difficult for some people going through divorce, but it’s an important step to a smooth process. In order for any successful mediation session, both must be willing to compromise to find a middle ground.

4. Make sure you are taking care of yourself during this process

Divorce can really take a toll on your mental health. Functioning under extreme levels of stress can often lead to not sleeping, eating, heightened anxiety and depression, etc. This can ultimately lead to poor decision making if you’re not in the right mental headspace, because you could make decisions out of fear or anger. Make sure you are taking care of yourself, don’t let yourself get too emotionally drained and exhausted. Make decisions with a clear head that are going to benefit your future and your childrens.

5. Don’t involve friends and family in your divorce

There is a lot of misinformation out there, and a lot of it can come from friends and family. While they do have your best interest in mind, it is unlikely that the advice they give you will be correct. Friends and family are also biased, and they know you better than anyone else, which can lead them to give you wrongful advice or tell you things they know you want to hear. Lean on your friends and family for emotional support, but don’t involve them in the divorce process, it can lead to a sticky situation.

For more helpful tips, check out our New Jersey divorce and legal separation guide. Now that we have gone over some helpful tips when going through divorce mediation, let’s talk about how you should prepare before meeting with your divorce mediator. To get a head start, here’s a divorce mediation checklist of documents you should begin preparing.