Crossroads cares about the needs of people in disputes. Our Mediators are there to help in any way we can. The expense of litigation can costs thousands of dollars. Mediation can be the way to go. When your at the crossroads of confusion and frustration, it's our Mission to get you on the path to a bright clear future. Crossroads Legal Services encourages your comments and suggestions.

1. What is Family Mediation?
A mediatorislike anombudsmanwhoworksouta deal betweenparties.Inordertonegotiate fairlyand
neutrallyforbothget-togethers,amediatormustunderstandthe parties'needs.Tomake that
determination,amediatormusthave goodlisteningskills, patience,threshold,flexibility,creativity,and
perseverance,aswell asthe capabilitytohandle conflictandbe empathetictothe damagedparties.
While listeningtothe parties,the mustalsobe verycareful notto taskhis/ her opinionsorbeliefsonto
the partiesand riskintroducingissuesthatare not the treatmentof the partiesthemselves.
Once the mediatorhas helpedthe partiesslimthe scope of the issuesimportanttothem, he or she will
oftenmeetprivatelywithone partyorthe other inorderto provide the otherparty'sviewpoint,This
meeting,knownasacaucus, isprivate soa Schleichercanchallenge one party'sposition,without
diminishingitinfrontof the otherparty mightchallenge the gettogetherbypointingoutthe
weaknessesof theirposition,forexample.Thoughthisevaluativemethodisveryuseful tobring
functionsclosertoan arrangement,italsorisksimpressive the party.Often,if the mediatorvoicesthe
otherparty's pointof viewtoostrongly,the mediatormayapparentlytake sides.Thiscanusuallybe
alleviatedinmove forward;if the mediatorincludessome explanationof thisevaluative role atthe
beginningof the process,the partieswill know thatwhatthe doestoone,thisindividualorshe isgoing
to do to the otherequally.
The mediator,asa focuson thirdparty,is oftenina positiontoidentifyoptionsthatthe partiesmight
not thinkof themselves.Thiskindof creativeelementof amediator'srole isthe one mostmediators
enjoy.Warringpartiesoftenbecome soentrenchedintheirpositionsthattheysee agreementonlyas
weakspot.The mediator,however,canfrequentlycraftsolutionsthatcanincorporate elementsof
bargainand gainfor eachand everygettogether.Havingthe abilityto"thinkoutof the box"is,
therefore,acritical skill forapowerful mediator.The maygoback and forthbetweenthe get-togethers
inan attemptto move themnearerto a consensusuntil ananswerisreached.
In the eventthatan agreementisgot,the mediatormustensure thatitis reducedtowriting.Thatwill
not meanthat the mediatormustbe the scrivener,however.Whenfunctionsare representedby
lawyers,the attorneyswillusuallywrite downtheirarrangementwiththe mediatoronlyensuringthatit
isperformed.If the partiesare unrepresented,thenthe Schleicherwill usuallydraftthe agreementas
well.Whendrafted,eachpartymustsignthe agreement,whichthenbecomesbindingonthe parties
and enforceable.Infamilymediation,the agreementiscalledaMarital SettlementAgreement(MSA)
and mayinclude a Child-rearingPlanif there are childrenininvolved.Whensigned,the MSA is
presentedtothe judge inone final hearing(suchatrial),inwhichthe judge willintegratethe agreement
intoan orderthat can be enforcedbythe courtroom.
While we couldonthe topic of what a mediatordoes,itbegsproblem:whatdoesamediatornotdo?
Firstof all,a mediatorcan'tpractice lawor whateversupplementaryprofessiontheymayhave while

2. mediating.A Schleichermustatall timesbe an unbiasedandobjective alternative partywhose singular
role isto helpthe mediationprocess.
The mediatorwillsthere be toassistthe partiesinachievinganagreementthattheycrafttogether.
Whenthe partiesare represented,it isnothardto letthe attorneysansweranylegal questionsthat
arise.The harderscenarioiswhenpartiesare not displayed.The mediatorprovidesinformation
necessaryforthe functionstomake informeddecisions.Evenif the Schleicherisanattorney, however,
theymightnot exactlyapplythatlegal informationtothe specificfactsof the parties'case and provide
legal opinions.The onlylegal advicethe lawyer/mediatorcanprovide isthatthe partieshave the rightto
hire a legal professional toassistthese mediationandthe situation.Similarly,if the vermittlerisa
psychologistortherapist,anddiscoversthatthe clientsorkidsrequire counselingduringthe process,
the mediatormaysuggestthat the get-togethersgetcounseling.Setupmediatorisa counselor;
however,the mediatorshouldneverdothe counseling.
If the mediationisadivorce,contract,foreclosure,oranyothermatter,the mediator'srole isthe same.
He or the ladymust serve asan unbiasedobjective thirdgettogethertoaidthe partiesinresolvingtheir
disputes.Inordertodo therefore,the mediatormustidentifyandclarifythe issuesforthe parties,
examine andtestthe parties'positions,trytofindcreative solutionsthatallow eachpartyto gainand
compromise,andensure thatanyagreementgotisreducedtowriting.Nomatterwhatadditional
traininga mediatorhas,the mediatormaywell notprovide inanyothercapacityto the clients.Even
thoughstill fairlynew,mediationhasbecomesanimportanttool withinourlegal systemforresolving
argumentsthatsavespeople time,money,helpingpreserve interactions.
Visitus here http://www.yanceyinternational.com/crossroads-legal-servicesformore details.