A Critique of Divorce Litigation: Reframing Mediation as a Design Project To Design the Best Possible Two-Household Family For the Benefit Of Your Children
Mediation is a process that has been used to resolve disputes over child custody, parenting time, child support, the division of marital assets and other divorce matters since the 1970s. Because the arena in which spouses/parents undergoing divorce resolve disputes has historically involved litigation, as mediation has gradually emerged as an alternative process it came to be dubbed a form of alternative dispute resolution. Other processes besides litigation have been tried as well. Such processes include settlement conferences, family conferencing, arbitration, mediation/arbitration (med/arb), and so on. All of these approaches have come to be considered under the umbrella of Alternative Dispute Resolution, or ADR for short.
Although increasing numbers of divorcing couples have utilized various forms of ADR over the years it remains true that as we approach the third decade of the twenty-first century, litigation continues to be the primary approach to settling matters of divorce in the United States. This is not true in other countries throughout the world.
Through a series of articles, reports on research findings, book reviews, videos, and links to other websites and blogs, the purpose of this website is to explore why we, at Lasting Agreements Mediation, think mediation remains the intervention of choice for most Americans seeking divorce, what myths people hold about the benefits of litigation, and what unintended consequences arise from the prevalence of using litigation to settle matters of divorce. It is our view that a prevalence of research shows that many people who litigate their divorce are often surprised and dissatisfied by the cost and outcomes of litigation.