Mediation

Resolving Texas Divorce Issues Through Mediation

As more and more people come to realize that risk of divorce litigation doesn't always justify the expense, they turn to alternative dispute resolution techniques to achieve their own negotiated settlements with greater certainty and less cost. Mediation is the most common approach used in resolving family law disputes without taking them to court. To learn how a certified Texas divorce mediator can help you resolve your outstanding divorce issues, contact Holly Schymik in Dallas.

Holly Schymik is a certified mediator and skilled collaborative law practitioner. She has received extensive training in collaborative law and other conflict resolution options including Basic, Interdisciplinary ad Advance Collaborative Law Training, and Basic and Advanced Family Law Mediation Training. Holly has polished the skills she has gained to work with parties seeking to resolve conflicts in divorce and custody matters.

Over the years, Holly has found that her collaborative law experience helps with her mediation practice, and vice versa. Communication skills, goal definition procedures and focus on constructive negotiation techniques are essential to success in both mediation and collaborative law.

What's the difference between mediation, arbitration and collaborative law?

Mediation is a highly focused negotiation session on one or more issues that is led and facilitated by a neutral mediator, who is appointed by the disputing parties to help guide their discussions. Although the mediator cannot force a settlement, he or she can comment on the strength of each party's position, suggest promising avenues of negotiation, and keep the focus on the problem at hand rather than the parties' dislike for one another. Mediation can be highly effective even when the parties would never imagine that they could agree about anything.

Arbitration is an alternative to litigation that resembles a trial, but the procedures are streamlined to simplify the presentation of evidence, and the matter is decided by a private arbitrator rather than a judge.

Collaborative law is a way of resolving all of the issues that a divorce case might present by committing the divorcing spouses to resolve them by agreement to the greatest extent possible.

When is mediation most effective?

Of these alternative dispute resolution techniques, family law mediation works best when the parties can't agree on major issues, such as child custody or property division. Holly can make sure you're fully prepared for your mediation session and will present your case clearly and persuasively. She can also advise you about the strengths and weaknesses of any settlement proposals that might emerge in mediation.

Holly Schymik is also available to serve as the third-party neutral in any family law mediation. She has been a board-certified family law specialist since 2000 under standards established by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and a trained mediator. Mediation and collaborative law have been important focuses of her practice throughout her entire career.

To learn more about the potential benefits of mediation in your divorce or family law case, contact experienced and knowledgeable attorney Holly Schymik in Dallas.