Avoid the ongoing cost of attorney fees and litigation
With litigated divorces, costs can go sky high. Each party usually pays their own attorney a retainer of at least $1500.00 and as the conflict and arguments escalate…attorney fees go up. With every phone call, letter, consultation and court date, both parties are billed for their time
The complete Mediation Process usually costs
less than the retainer for just one attorney.
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Mediation fees are $200.00 per hour. A minimum fee of $450.00 is required to schedule an initial 2 ½ Mediation Session. This
fee is typically divided between both parties and is due at the time Mediation is scheduled. Quite often all matters can be settled during this single Mediation Session.
Once a Mediation Agreement has been executed, a document preparation service is also available. The fee for preparing all necessary documents to file with the Court is $300.00. The cost of the Court Filing Fees and Service of Process Fees are paid directly to the Clerk of the Court of the county in which your divorce is being filed.
PAY AS YOU GO
At Mediation & Counseling Consultants, you pay for each Mediation Session at the time it is scheduled. If the parties feel it is necessary to schedule another Mediation Session, you can proceed with the process at the same pace your finances allow.
For example, after your first session, you may decide one more session is necessary and schedule it after one or both parties
have the finances available. Some parties may have made all of their decisions, but they decide to wait a month or two before having the Marital Settlement Agreement or court documents prepared.
| Again…this process is controlled by the parties involved, even as it pertains to the cost. |
SHARED COST
Usually, each party pays one-half of the cost of the Mediation. However, there are also many cases in which one party agrees
to
pay all the cost, or a higher percentage than the other. In some cases, one party may pay for the Mediation sessions and then
get the other party’s portion reimbursed to them when the marital property is divided or sold.
When attorneys are involved the cost of litigation will often be driven by one party who forces deadlines on the other party, for matters such as discovery documents and hearing dates. This inevitably drives up legal fees and costs.
INEXPENSIVE TO TRY
Since mediating your divorce is a pay-as-you-go process, there is little financial risk in attempting to use it. Mediation is a
voluntary process, so either party can choose to stop Mediation at any time. However, most people find Mediation to be a
positive alternative to litigation and the benefit of saving thousands of dollars is a great incentive in coming to mutual agreement
on the issues at hand.
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