Mediation involves you and your partner agreeing to the appointment of a neutral third party mediator and we will be happy to recommend which mediator we think would be most appropriate.

That mediator will be specially trained and experienced in carrying out this work and will often be a qualified family law solicitor.

The mediator will have an initial meeting with you to explain the procedure and, if the mediator is satisfied that the case is suitable for mediation, he or she will then arrange for a meeting with both of you. The mediator will manage the discussions between you to see whether you can reach an agreement.  Depending on the issues involved, you may have two or three or sometimes more such meetings.

Mediation provides a forum for discussions relating to all issues including children issues, financial agreements and practical issues.  The intention is that the mediation will provide an environment that is respectful and inclusive. It will provide legal information and general guidance and the mediator will manage the process, help you fix agendas, take notes and minutes and can ultimately prepare a document to record the decisions made.

Mediation is voluntary and will only work if both parties are prepared to act reasonably within the mediation. When successful, mediation can be a cost effective and sensible way to resolve matters.

Our own Mediation Services 

Our solicitor, Emma Hamilton Cole is trained to conduct mediation.

Because the mediator needs to be neutral, if we have seen you as a client and we decide that mediation is appropriate, we will need to refer you to a mediator in another firm.

However if you are not already a client of the firm, we are very happy to offer you our mediation services and our mediators are often recommended by other solicitors in the area.

During Mediation 

If we have recommended you to see a mediator and the mediation takes place, it is quite appropriate for you to come back to us between the mediation sessions to ask for further legal advice and we will be happy to provide that.

If the mediation does result in agreement being reached over the finances, the mediator will then refer the matter back to us so that we can draw up Court papers to record the settlement.

Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings

If you want to consider mediation then you should ask to see a mediator for a Mediation Information Assessment Meeting.  The mediator can then explain in more detail what mediation involves and their fees.

To avoid people issuing court proceedings without even considering the possibility of mediation, the law now says that if a court application is going to be made in relation to financial matters or children matters, then you are required to attend one of these Mediation Information Assessment Meetings (MIAMS) before issuing the proceedings.

If we are already acting for you, we will need to refer you to a different firm to attend this MIAMS meeting.

Otherwise one of our mediators at this firm will be happy to see you for such a meeting.

For more information about mediation or to book a MIAMS meeting or an initial no obligation appointment please telephone us to fix an appointment to see Emma Hamilton Cole.

Resolution Together

We are pleased to offer this innovative way of working with couples who wish to have advice from one solicitor, in joint meetings.
Resolution Together enables couples to have joint advice sessions with one solicitor where this is safe and suitable. The advice is provided to enable the couple to find joint solutions whether that be in relation to financial or children/family arrangements with the benefit of family focussed legal advice. Other professionals including for example pensions or tax advisers can be brought into the joint meetings to deal with complex issues, with the aim of reaching arrangements decided together and then recorded at court (in the case of financial issues) by means of a joint consent order
The aim is that by providing joint advice to a couple whose aims are similar will cut down on the costs and timeframe involved in resolving outstanding issues.

The process begins with the couple having individual meetings with the solicitor and a consideration of how the process can best work for the family and what information is needed, before joint advice sessions are convened.

Useful Links;

Collaborative Process

Unmarried Couples

Ways of Resolving Issues