Why Work With a Divorce Mediator When You Already Agree on Everything

Uncontested Divorce Mediation

Posted November 21, 2019

Television has prepared us for every divorce to be messy and angry. But not all couples split in a big dramatic courtroom battle. In fact, some are still basically friends, even as the marriage falls apart. You still share the same basic values you did when you got together. You are still holding the same careers, you are even still friendly with each other, but the love is gone.

Maybe an event or life change came between you. Maybe you simply drifted apart and are ready to move on as two separate people. But the truly surreal part of it all (compared to television) is that you basically agree on everything about the divorce.

When You’re Divorcing But Agree on Everything

You and your partner sat down like logical people when finally discussing the topic of divorce. They said thoughtfully, “We should probably sell the house and split the proceeds. You think about it for a moment and nod. That would be best. You ask if it’s okay if you keep the dog, you were always closer. They think about it for a moment and agree, then say maybe they’ll get a cat for their new place.

Some divorces are like this. In fact, more divorces are completely amicable and logical than you might think.

But the real surprise is that the most agreeable divorces are often those that run into serious accidental blunders. Not because you’re too busy fighting, but because you’re more likely to try and print up a boilerplate divorce and edit yourselves. After all, you don’t need lawyers because you don’t want to fight about anything. Right?

Not necessarily.

Covering Your Bases in an Amicable Divorce

Couples who are intent on fighting about every last possession and penny are actually more likely to be thorough in assessing their finances and assets. They are also more likely to seek the advice of two separate (and potentially costly) lawyers to help them cover all the necessary financial and logistical bases then draw up the proper paperwork.

Spouses who agree to divorce and have no trouble meeting each other’s terms across the dining room table are actually less likely to seek professional advice and, oddly enough, more likely to make a mistake. You may forget about the fact that retirement funds earned during marriage are split, or about your change in tax status after you are no longer a married couple.

Couples who fight are guided by their separate lawyers to fight down to the last detail, which ironically means these details do get covered. Couples who don’t fight are far more likely to make DIY and boilerplate-divorce mistakes that can be surprisingly costly in the long run. This is exactly why Divorce mediation in Chicago is the ideal answer for couples who want to divorce agreeably, even if you don’t feel that you need mediation.

What a Divorce Mediator Can Do for Agreeable Separating Spouses

Everyone knows divorce lawyers are expensive, and they have a reputation for making trouble where there wasn’t any before. Naturally, you and your spouse would rather hold onto your ‘moving on money’ without blowing on an unnecessarily contentious divorce. However, you also need the kind of thorough legal guidance that a divorce lawyer can offer.

Hiring just one divorce lawyer for one person is unfair, which leaves the ideal solution as the only one left on the table. Divorce mediation in Chicago is very much like hiring just one lawyer, only their client is both of you, and the goal is to reach the most supportive and complete divorce agreement possible.

Even though you don’t need mediation in the traditional sense, agreeable separating couples can absolutely the helpful advice of one compassionate divorce professional at the table to guide the discussion. A Chicago divorce mediator will remember to ask if you have any vacation properties or vehicles that will need to be split. They will help you build the fairest and most flexible custody schedule if you have children. And a divorce mediator will help you walk step-by-step through your finances to properly split the retirement, savings, investments, and other assets that are all too easy to forget when you’re focused on covering the big-ticket items.

The divorce mediator is also there for you if, in covering your bases, you do find a few things to disagree on or that strike an emotion more deeply than expected. They can help you work through any remaining differences and come up with the best possible terms for you both.

But most importantly, a Chicago divorce mediator will help you draft a divorce agreement that can be registered with the court.

Drafting a Court-Acceptable Divorce Contract

Other than helping you cover your bases, the most important thing your divorce mediator can do is to draft your divorce agreement. Because this is a legal document that severs a legal marital status, you can’t just print up a divorce like you can with a rental lease. Each divorce must be written carefully according to your agreed terms and within the letter of the law.

Mistakes or unrealistic terms that are written from inexperience can actually be rejected by the court. This can happen if the drafted divorce agreement is not fit to file.

But working with a Chicago divorce mediator ensures that your first submission of an uncontested divorce agreement is sure to be accepted by the court. So that after all your hard work, you can be over and done with on your schedule according to all the terms you have so carefully mapped out.

Seeking a Divorce Mediator for Your Agreeable Divorce

You and your soon-to-be-ex don’t have to fight to seek divorce consultation. The best possible course when you are ready to agree on everything reasonably is to work with a divorce mediator. They can help you sever the marriage cleanly with terms that will make it easy for you and your spouse to go your separate ways without burden, baggage, or any need to look back with regret. Please feel free to Contact Split Simple today for a consultation on your divorce plans and connect with a Chicago divorce mediator who can make your upcoming divorce as smooth as possible.

Split Simple

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180 North Stetson Avenue #3500

Chicago, IL 60601