How Mediation Protects Children in a Staten Island Divorce
Video Transcript
Keeping a Staten Island custody dispute out of Richmond County Supreme Court’s contested calendar reduces the conflict children are exposed to during a divorce. Mediation lets parents shape a parenting plan together instead of having one imposed by a judge.
Ray Hrdlicka – Host – Attorneys.Media
The invasiveness of a regular divorce kind of explains why divorce mediation might be an option. You know, obviously, does it stay away from all those invasive issues regarding regular divorce? Are those the differences?
Bill Leininger – Divorce Mediation Attorney – Staten Island, New York
Well, I would say the percentage of cases where we have to bring in a child psychologist very low, maybe 2%, 3%. Sociologists might say we self-select our clients because a lot of times parents who are interested in divorce mediation are interested in protecting their children from sparing them from the problems.
Interestingly enough, many clients who use divorce mediation have been children of terrible divorces that their own parents had, and they saw what it did to them, they saw the stress. So my rule of thumb is very simple. I don’t say divorce mediation is the best alternative for all cases, but I would say 80 to 90% of the cases.