Alternative Dispute Resolution is often a productive way to resolve family law issues. If Alternative Dispute Resolution is right for your Minnesota divorce case, you will participate in Mediation, an Early Neutral Evaluation, or Arbitration. The Minneapolis-St. Paul divorce attorneys at Alithis Family Law, LLC will help determine which option is right for your case.
Mediation is often the most affordable way to reach a resolution during a divorce. Some courts even require that couples attempt to mediate their divorce before going to a trial. Although the process is more affordable than going to a trial, it is not free. Typically, both spouses will split the cost of mediation.
Early Neutral Evaluation has two components: Social Early Neutral Evaluation, also known as SENE: dealing with custody and parenting time issues & Financial Early Neutral Evaluation, also referred to as FENE: addressing all financial issues in a divorce.
Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution and is a process where a neutral third party decides a dispute between the parties outside of court.
Parties may go to arbitration either because the Court ordered arbitration or because the parties agreed to use arbitration. Sometimes, the Court will order the parties to arbitrate the issues of personal property. In that scenario, both parties would submit their case to the arbitrator and the arbitrator would make a binding decision relative to the disposition of the personal property.
A Moderated Settlement Conference is a process that fits under the umbrella of Alternative Dispute Resolution. Typically, this is an avenue that is used by the parties to settle their case. Most of the time, a Moderated Settlement Conference is ordered by a Judge with the consent of both parties and their respective attorneys when trial is on the horizon. This is simply another effort at resolving the case before all of the contested issues go to trial.
