How mediation can help divorcing couples in North Carolina

While a divorce can be an emotionally painful experience, there are actions that you can take to minimize this pain. For instance, you can opt to negotiate a divorce settlement with the help of a North Carolina mediator as opposed to ending a marriage through litigation. One of the key benefits of mediation is that you and your spouse retain a greater level of control of the structure of the settlement.

You can retain ownership of a retirement account

Generally speaking, money inside of a retirement account is split between both parties to the marriage. However, you and your spouse can create a custom agreement that allows each party to keep possession of pensions or other tools used to save for the future. It is important that you find out how much a pension or retirement account is worth before agreeing to to such an arrangement.

Other issues can be resolved through mediation

A mediator may be able to help you and your spouse come to an agreement on issues such as paying down debt that was accrued during the marriage. If you have children, a collaborative approach to divorce may make it easier to create a parenting plan that is more likely to be approved by a judge. This is because each party is working together to resolve problems in an amicable manner.

Mediation may be an effective method of ending a marriage in an affordable and timely fashion. However, even if you do work with a mediator, it may still be a good idea to have a family law attorney on your team. This person may review any agreement that is reached during a mediation session before it goes into effect. An attorney may also provide insight into whether a judge would likely approve a proposed parenting plan.