The two common forms of mediation used in family law are facilitative and evaluative mediation. An evaluative mediator will be active in making recommendations, evaluating the dispute and furnishing advice to the parties about the range of likely outcomes should a matter be litigated.
The more common facilitative model of mediation is one where the mediator has no advisory or determinative role in regard to the content of the dispute or the outcome of it’s resolution. The objective is to promote negotiation in terms of the participants underlying needs and interests rather than legal rights or obligations. The participants rather than the mediator provide the solution to their dispute and the mediator is the facilitator of the process rather than an authority figure providing substantive advice and pressure to settle.
Participants to a mediation can be represented at the mediation or can have lawyers in the background.
Organisations such as Relationships Australia, Centacare and Anglicare provide low-cost mediation. Private mediators are more expensive but the process may be more quickly advanced with the parties and their chosen mediator setting the pace.
The participants are in control of the mediation process assisted by the mediator. The participants have no control over the type of lawyer their former partner may choose. That lawyer may adopt an adversarial approach and undermine any agreement that is reached the mediation. If lawyers are not present at mediation it can be difficult for a party to reality test options that may be put forward at the mediation and assess whether an option is reasonable.
Mediation allows participants to decide for themselves how they want to proceed and it is the participants not a court who make the final decisions.
When choosing a mediator give consideration to engaging a mediator who is a member of the Resolution Institute an organization whose objects are to establish and promote mediation throughout Australia and foster the use of mediation to prevent, manage and resolve disputes. http://www.resolution.institute/
It is important that participants be comfortable with the mediator they choose. If your lawyer engages the mediator on your behalf you should ask that you be provided with information about how the mediator would propose conducting the mediation and preferably have an intake session with the mediator so that the mediator can clearly outline how the mediation process would work.
Mediation relies heavily upon the use of social science skills. It is reasonable to expect that the mediator you choose has undertaken training and ongoing professional development in the field of mediation. Ask the mediator what values and goals they emphasis in their practice. It is important that the style used by the mediator engaged by you is one with which you are able to work.