Because strong emotions often accompany a family law issue, some couples want a third-party to help them communicate and resolve their problem.

• Involves direct negotiation between the parties facilitated by a third-party (examples: therapist, minister, family friend, mediator)
• Works best when parties have equal knowledge of facts and have a limited amount of emotion
• Works best when legal issues and facts are uncomplicated
• Works best if third-party can truly facilitate and not take sides
• Does not work as well if the third-party becomes an advocate for one side
• Can be difficult to find a qualified third-party who is willing to facilitate discussion
• Parties may or may not have lawyers
• Parties may or may not exchange information relevant to the issues
• Parties may or may not employ other experts to assist with information and advice
• Lawyers are normally employed to draft settlement document and appropriate closing documents
• Generally, an economical way to resolve a dispute