Choosing a Path: Process Choice in Family Law Cases
When should you try to negotiate, or mediate… or litigate? Here’s what the various approaches to divorce can look like.
DISCUSSION
- PROCESS: Direct, but unassisted talks
- COST: Free — or whatever ordering two Starbucks creations costs this month
- TIME: Undetermined
- BENEFITS: Direct, free discussions between the two people who should be making the decisions
- DRAWBACKS: No referee is present during discussions, or professional input as to agenda or options
MEDIATION
- PROCESS: Direct, but assisted talks
- COST: $100-600 per hour; depending on whether attorneys participate TOTAL COST: $1,000 to $5,000
- TIME: From 10 hours to 12 weeks
- BENEFITS: Guided discussions, with input regarding solutions other couples have used; the neutral host can temper the tone of the talks, if needed
- DRAWBACKS: No power to subpoena documents, cross-examine or force responses to questions; people must be able to speak out for themselves
ATTORNEY NEGOTIATION
- PROCESS: Attorney dialogue, with exchanges of information, but no formal discovery
- COST: $175-275 per hour for each attorney; TOTAL COST, perhaps $5,000 to $10,000 EACH
- TIME: From 3 to 9 months
- BENEFITS: Professional guidance and representation are used throughout the negotiations
- DRAWBACKS: Process is indirect, and frequently invisible to the parties; personalities of the attorneys may become a factor. Costs are harder to control
LITIGATED SETTLEMENT
- PROCESS: Formal discovery, with settlement before trial
- COST: $175-275 per hour for each attorney; TOTAL COST, perhaps $15,000 to $30,000 EACH
- TIME: From 6 to 12 months
- BENEFITS: Useful if facts need to be established, or financial information ferreted out
- DRAWBACKS: Can be an expensive exercise in preparing for a trial that never occurs; the contest between attorneys frequently takes on a life of its own. Proceeding formally can be slow and costly
ADJUDICATION
- PROCESS: Formal discovery proceedings, followed by trial
- COST: $175-275 per hour for each attorney; TOTAL COST, perhaps $25,000
to $50,000 EACH …or more - TIME: From 6 to 24 months
- BENEFITS: The laws of the State are applied to the family. If the spouses can’t agree, a Judge will impose a solution and provide closure
- DRAWBACKS: The laws of the State are applied to the family, with no guarantee that your Judge’s interpretations of those laws will result in an acceptable outcome on any issue
Contact Us:
Jennifer A. Ewers
Phone: (208) 882-9121
Fax: (208) 882-0134
Jennifer.Ewers@EwersLaw.com
Our Location:
609 S Washington,
Suite 206
Moscow, ID 83843