A mediator is someone who has completed at least 30 hours of mediation training and an additional 10 hours of specialized training for family law mediation. A mediator is not a judge, but a neutral facilitator you both hire together  to help you identify and resolve issues in your family law matter. However, someone hired as a mediator cannot provide legal advice to either party; only attorneys can do that. Collaborative attorneys are supportive of mediation and the work of the mediators, whether they are financial, parenting, or more general scope mediators.

Mediators do not draft final legal documents for the court because drafting is part of the attorney’s advocacy role. A mediator could be an attorney, financial professional, mental health professional or anyone who has completed the training so, make sure that your mediator understands family law and what the court needs to have resolved to sign off on your divorce. If an attorney is hired as a mediator, they are only wearing the hat of the mediator and will not act as an attorney in your matter.