Family mediation

Family mediation is a unique tool for resolving a dispute (conflict) between: spouses (former spouses), parents and children, other relatives, as well as with persons who in one way or another have influence on family members and other relatives.

Family mediation resolves disputes or conflicts that lie both in the legal field and outside it. The first category of disputes includes disputes that can be brought to court. For example, a relative is not satisfied with his income in the family business and wants to try to resolve the dispute in court (this does not mean that the decision will be in his favor), because such a dispute will be considered by the court, which will make the final decision within the framework of the law.

As for the conflict from «outside the legal field», there are life situations for which it is not possible to go to court to resolve. In this category of disputes, lawsuits may not be accepted for trial and consideration by the court for one reason or another, or the parties may not take the dispute to court for one reason or another.

For example, the legal relations of the parties are not legally regulated, or the parties to the dispute do not formally have violations of the law, or the dispute will damage the parties’ business reputation, lower assets and revenue, and even greater conflict involving many third parties, etc.

Another example, there is an apartment used under a social rental agreement, and many relatives with children who have been living in the apartment for many years are registered in it. They don’t want to privatize housing for one reason or another. Some of the relatives want to sell the apartment so that everyone can part with their share, because they find it very uncomfortable to live in a small apartment with so many people. And others believe that relatives, for one reason or another, cannot participate in privatization and should not receive monetary compensation from the sale of an apartment, because once upon a time, they were fraudulently registered in a social rental agreement, or they did not want to sell the apartment, because they would not be able to purchase decent housing with the proceeds from its sale. The dispute may also be complicated by the residence or registration in the apartment of children who may be under guardianship, trusteeship or adopted.

Or another example, the parties to the dispute are spouses who are at the stage of divorce, as part of the division of property, a large company with multimillion-dollar assets is subject to division. Legal disputes can lead to a drop in assets and share prices, as well as raise issues, for example, the illegal acquisition of real estate by the company or one of the spouses in the 90s or 2000s, the withdrawal of assets abroad, etc. These situations become difficult for the court and the parties to resolve, and sometimes the resolution of a dispute depends solely on the will of the parties.

In this regard, the best option for resolving the dispute will be a peaceful settlement of the conflict through a third neutral party (mediator), since when a court decision is made, one of the parties or both parties will always be dissatisfied with the decision made.

In addition, it happens that a decision is made and the parties have a writ of execution, but in practice the court decision is not executed, or is executed, but not in the way that the party that applied to the court imagined, and therefore remains de facto dissatisfied.

Family mediation successfully resolves disputes both within and outside the legal field, and also eliminates conflicts arising during enforcement proceedings, so that all its participants remain satisfied.

Family mediation has attractive differences from the court process:

1) The parties themselves determine their future fate and the fate of their children, and do not entrust it to complete strangers, who sometimes may be indifferent to how the parties will live in the future after the court decision, since when making a decision, the court and lawyers, attorneys, are primarily guided by the law and the evidence base, and not by justice and the wishes of the parties;

2) The solution found during family mediation satisfies all its participants, the parties do not become enemies to each other and retain the opportunity for further cooperation and communication. In court, the decision can be made in favor of only one of the parties, the parties after the court decision can become enemies and therefore lose the opportunity for adequate interaction in the future. In addition, the party in whose favor the court decision was made is not always satisfied;

3) Family mediation is much faster. Sometimes the parties can reach a compromise within 2-3 hours. In court, the dispute resolution process can last for more than one year.;

4) Financial costs are significantly lower. During the trial, the financial costs of the parties can reach a frightening value, although it is possible to recover some of the costs.

Some examples of disputes (conflicts) that may require family mediation to resolve:

1. Resolution of disputes arising in family business.

2. Resolution of disputes related to divorce and division of jointly acquired property.

3. Resolution of disputes related to distribution of rights to use residential space used both under a social tenancy agreement and residential space owned.

4. Resolution of disputes on distribution of responsibilities for running a household at the place of residence.

5. Resolution of disputes on distribution of inheritance.

6. Resolution of disputes related to the procedure for raising and living of children.

7. Resolution of disputes on payment of alimony.

8. Resolution of disputes during enforcement proceedings.

9. Resolution of disputes between parents and children on other family issues.