Family Law FAQ: Lawyers vs Divorce Mediation

Uncontested Divorce Mediation

Posted August 15, 2024

When you are planning a divorce, the first step most people take is to hire an attorney. While commonly called divorce attorneys, the official term for an attorney who works primarily with divorces is a family law attorney. This is because family law is the field of law that includes divorce and child custody. A Denver divorce lawyer is someone who understands all the matters of family assets, custody, and safety that can go into a divorce, no matter how complicated.

But what if you want Denver divorce mediation instead? You know that a family law attorney is necessary to complete a typical divorce – in fact, most divorcing couples have two different lawyers to represent both sides. So, how does that translate to a divorce mediation service? At Split Simple, all of our Denver divorce mediators are also Denver family law attorneys, so we can answer all your questions about divorce mediation and family law.

How Much Does a Divorce Mediator Know About Family Law?

Divorce mediators are experts in family law. They have to be in order to guide clients toward the right compromises and terms. A divorce mediator specializes in resolving conflicts and finding solutions so that two people who may not agree on everything (or anything at all) can still achieve a peaceful and mutually beneficial divorce agreement.

To do this, they must know family law inside and out because sometimes divorce solutions are complicated, and every divorce agreement must conform to the law to be accepted by the court.

How Much of Family Law is About Divorce?

While more than 50% of family law practitioners focus primarily on divorces, only about one-third of family law focuses on divorce itself. Divorce laws tend to specifically cover the division of assets, defining how to fairly split the marital household and all marital property, including accounts, possessions, funds, stocks, properties, and so on. Divorce law also dictates how divorces are handled if they are negotiated in the courts.

The rest of family law, however, relates to other family matters. Child custody occupies another third of family law, but it is not exclusive to divorce. Separated parents and even parents that are still a couple, but who temporarily live far from each other, sometimes rely on child custody to keep things simple.

Other aspects of family law include matters of adoption, marriage, dispute resolution, and inheritance. Of course, inheritance carries over into estate law, which is actually a different area of practice that is closely linked to family law.

Does Your Divorce Mediator Need to Be a Family Law Attorney?

No, but it’s better if they are. Many people become divorce mediators, and not all of them are family law attorneys. The skills of Denver divorce mediation can be a natural talent or a trained skill. Some people work as divorce mediators focusing only on helping clients resolve their differences and reach certain agreements, but they do not have a law degree and may have never practiced family law outside of mediation. 

At Split Simple, however, all of our mediators are also licensed Denver family law attorneys who are directly familiar with the current laws regarding divorce, child custody, and asset management. Having an attorney-mediator ensures that your Denver divorce mediation and divorce document preparation are all within the same service, with mutual expertise ensuring the quality of your experience.

Can You Hire a Family Law Attorney to Be Your Divorce Mediator?

Only sometimes. You can theoretically ask anyone to be your divorce mediator, but there’s no guarantee that they will agree to it, or that they will offer you a valuable service. The important thing to consider is that an effective divorce mediator needs both sets of skills: Understanding of Colorado family law and the ability to mediate a difficult divorce.

If you have a Denver family law attorney in mind, you can ask them to mediate. But if they are not a strong mediator, they might say no.  You can ask a non-divorce mediator to mediate your divorce. But if they aren’t also an expert in family law, they might say no. 

The best route is to find a divorce mediator who is already a family law attorney or an attorney who is already a mediator.

If You Get a Non-Attorney Mediator, Do You Need an Attorney to Write the Divorce?

There are some Denver divorce mediation services that offer non-attorney mediators. You may enjoy their style of mediation, but it is important to check and see if you will need to hire a lawyer in addition to a mediator in this case.

An attorney-mediator can not only help you negotiate a legally compliant divorce agreement, but they can also draft the final document and submit it to the court in their capacity as a lawyer. If you hire a non-attorney mediator, you may need to have the resulting agreement reviewed, revised, and submitted to the court by a licensed family law attorney, which typically costs an additional fee.

Can I Fire My Attorney and Hire a Divorce Mediator Instead?

Yes. If you are dissatisfied with the adversarial nature of personal divorce attorneys, you can always fire your current attorney and seek out Denver divorce mediation instead. A person can always fire their lawyer, stop paying them, and stop receiving legal services if they want to change direction. 

Can I Get Divorce Mediation if My Spouse has Already Hired a Divorce Attorney?

At the beginning of a Denver divorce, it is common for both spouses to “lawyer up” and hire separate family law attorneys to represent them. This results in adversarial negotiations that may not go anywhere for some time. If you decide that you want Denver divorce mediation instead of hiring your own lawyer, you can do that. But your spouse will also need to consent to divorce mediation for this strategy to work.

If your spouse already has a lawyer and wants to keep them, even though you enter divorce mediation, they can. They can bring their lawyer, consult privately with their lawyer, or ask their lawyer to consult with the divorce mediator if this makes them more comfortable with the divorce proceedings.

Can a Family Law Attorney Protect My Business in a Divorce?

Yes. Family law and business law overlap in divorces, and many family law attorneys and divorce mediators have extensive experience in managing ownership of a business as part of divorce proceedings. If one spouse wants to protect a business that is considered a marital asset, they can buy the spouse out of their half. If the business does not matter, it can be sold and the proceeds split between the spouses. If the value of the business is beyond a reasonable buy-out, the business-owner spouse can build a long-term buyout plan instead for the split value of the business at the time of the divorce.

Family law attorneys can often handle this level of business division, and they can also call on the expertise of corporate law attorneys to assist if the matter is more complicated.

Work With Attorney-Mediators at Split Simple

If you are planning a Denver divorce mediation and want to ensure that you are working with a skilled family law attorney, Split Simple is here to provide for your needs. Each of our skilled mediators is also a licensed Denver family law attorney, ensuring that your divorce is conducted with expert mediation and complete legal knowledge. After just a few short sessions, you will be able to resolve conflicts, reach agreements, and file your final divorce documents with the court as a single comprehensive divorce mediation service.

Split Simple

1624 Market Street #202

Denver, CO 80202

720-501-4600