family mediation

Mediating Separation While Living Together: How to Keep the Peace and Move Forward

Negotiating a separation while still living together isn’t easy, but it’s possible to keep the peace. Get practical tips on mediating divorce issues under one roof—respect boundaries, protect your kids from the fallout, and turn tension into cooperation.

How to Calculate Child Support in Ontario

Child support ensures that children continue to be financially supported by both parents, even after separation or divorce. In Ontario, child support calculations are based on the Federal Child Support Guidelines and include both a basic amount for living expenses and special expenses for things like medical care and education. Payments are typically based on the paying parent’s gross income, and support is payable even in 50-50 custody arrangements.

Why High Net Worth Individuals and Celebrities Choose Mediation

Discover why high net worth individuals and public figures benefit from mediation during separation. Learn how mediation protects privacy, shields the digital footprint, and provides tailored solutions, using a compelling recent mediation example. Explore the advantages of keeping personal and financial matters confidential and secure.

Understanding the Cost of Divorce

Expenses associated with divorce can vary - anywhere from $5,000 for mediation to $30,000 for litigation. Understanding the factors that lead to this difference can help you take control of your separation, keep costs low, and avoid a prolonged court battle.

Date of Separation in Ontario: What is it and why does it matter?

The date of separation is not just about emotional closure; it has legal consequences that can shape the course of your divorce journey. When it comes to untangling the threads of a relationship in Ontario, the date of separation holds significant sway. It's not just a marker of emotional closure; it's a legal milestone that can shape the course of your divorce journey. So, let's delve into the specifics of why this date matters.

Do I Tell My Children About My Ex's Affair?

Divorce is hard enough, but when infidelity is involved, the emotional toll on both spouses and their children can be exponentially higher.

15 Years Later, My Son Thanked Me and My Ex for Using Mediation

Divorce can be an incredibly difficult and emotional process, especially when children are involved. As a mother who has been through mediation during my divorce, I can attest to the fact that it is not an easy journey. However, looking back on the experience now, I am incredibly grateful that I chose to take the collaborative approach with my ex-husband.

Mediation: Know Your Options

Mediation has become very popular because it’s less expensive, more efficient and less antagonistic than the court system. Our team has diverse backgrounds and experience in mental health and family law. We will work with you individually or as a team, and will attend all sessions, review your documents, provide guidance, and help generate options for the best-possible outcome for your family.

Using "I" Statements in Mediation to Find Solutions and Avoid Conflict

Divorce mediation can be a challenging process, as emotions can often run high. Using "I" statements is an effective communication technique that can help keep the conversation focused on finding solutions and avoiding conflict.

How to Create a Child-Focused Parenting Plan in Mediation

In mediation, parents can discuss their shared parenting values and how best to support their children together in both homes. Unlike any other process available to separating/divorcing families, mediation allows co-parents the most control in creating a parenting plan that is unique to their children’s needs.

Separation and Children's Transitions Between Homes

When a family separates, one of the biggest adjustments is having the children transition between homes. The following are tips and resources from some of the leading child-psychologists on how to help children feel comfortable with having two places to call home.

Emotions Are Key in Separation

Not all legal decisions are based on law. Some are based on emotions. Emotions are key to human functioning and decision-making; they are the main ingredient in formulating and driving individual facts. In divorce or separation, it is these facts that matter most; and, they are not the same as legal rules or evidence.

Framing Mediation: Family-Centricity or Lawyer Protectionism?

The push for litigating divorce contributes to stonewalling the development of fundamental problem-solving skill-sets as well as the removing and stripping away critical elements that individuals need to resolve conflict in a healthier manner.

How Your Communication Impacts Your Child's Future Adjustment

The greater the ability of parents to share responsibilities and support one another, the better the outcomes for their children’s well-being and psychosocial adjustment.

4 Key Skills To Help in Mediation

Don’t be surprised if you feel frustrated or angry upon hearing different points of view, hearing proposals you don’t like, and having to think of alternatives. Remember that most conflicts are resolved through this process of talking and listening and creating solutions. Prepare yourself to deal with any possible difficult moments.

How To Manage Conflict: Strategies that Work

According to a recent study published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, “interparental conflict adversely affects children’s emotional, behavioral, social, academic, and intergenerational relationship development.” It comes as no surprise that, when stressful life events, such as divorce or separation are added into the mix, managing interparental conflict can become an even more difficult task. Grounded in existing research, the strategies below can help navigate and even improve interparental conflict, especially when families experience divorce or separation.

What is Your Lawyer Telling You About Divorce and Mediation?

Divorce mediation is becoming the popular choice for families who want to save money, time and their co-parenting relationship. The reality is, that if you have children, court should be your last resort. If you hire a lawyer, will they tell you that?According to their Rules of Professional Conduct, lawyers have an obligation to inform clients of the use of mediation ( or alternative dispute resolution (ADR)): “When appropriate, the lawyer should inform the client of ADR options and, if so instructed, take steps to pursue those options.”

The Cost of Going to Court: No One Wins

Lawyering up can be bad for your mental health. As a result of mass media, and TV and film in particular we have been very much conditioned as a culture to ‘lawyer up’ as soon as one partner declares the marriage isn’t working or is over. Let’s face it, the thousands of peaceful divorces that happen all the time do not make for interesting news or drama precisely because they are mostly free of any drama that can be monetized. So instead, after 5, 10, 15 or 20 plus years of marriage, many couples automatically just do as they see and move directly to their designated corner of the ring, ready to fight, determining how to prepare to sustain several rounds. According to Statistics Canada, the average duration of marriages in Canada remains steady around 14 years with 42% of the divorces occurring for marriages lasting between 10 and 24 years.

How to Keep Your Divorce Private

Divorce can happen to anyone, regardless of ethnicity, gender or social class. While we try to keep it as private as possible, if you are a public figure, social influencer or community leader, divorce can be quite a public event. When you engage in mediation, the details of your divorce are private and remain private. You have the same opportunities to go through full financial disclosure, business valuations and discuss relevant details of your co-parenting relationship. The big difference is that, in contrast to court which is public, mediation is a private process where the information exchanged is privileged and confidential. This also allows couples to speak freely and focus on the issues at hand without the fear of private becoming public.

How to Handle Divorce During Holidays

Brrrr…. separating during this already cold and dark season makes for an extra gloomy winter affair. It can quickly become a slippery slope into depression or unhealthy routines such as over-eating, over-drinking or self-medicating.

What is a Parenting Plan? Why do I Need One?

When a couple separates, they, typically, address two major things in their separation agreement: property division and parenting arrangements.

We agree on everything. Should we still mediate?

Mediation is a lot more than just a conflict/(alternative) dispute resolution process. Many families just need good information, guidance, and support in making decisions that best fit their needs and saves them time and money.

My lawyer told me not to mediate. After $67,000 in legal fees and 3 years in court, I’m broken.

When they decided to separate, Lucy and her husband wanted to go through mediation. But her lawyer told her it’s a “waste of time and money”.

Family Court: Well-known Judge Tells You What You Need to Know, Before You Head that Way.

Family Court Judge, Harvey Brownstone, warns families about going to court. Ask anyone who has ever appeared in family court as a litigant – even if they had a lawyer – and they are almost certain to describe their experience as unsatisfactory. Why? What can be done to help people so that their family court experience is more predictable, more positive and constructive, less time-consuming, and consequently more beneficial to themselves and their children? An even more important question is, What can be done to help people avoid going to court in the first place?