Who pays for divorce mediation? In divorce mediation no upfront retainer fee is required. You pay for the time that you use as you use it. So, after each meeting you pay for that hour meeting. Sometimes the mediator spent time in between meetings writing up part of your divorce agreement and you have to pay for that time too. Thus, each meeting can cost a different amount. Some couples have one person pay for one meeting and the other person will get the next one. But if the goal is for each person to pay half, this procedure might not work out equally.
Overall the cost of divorce mediation is really significantly less than a litigated divorce. But it is not free. And the cost of paying for this service needs to be addressed. The mediator has no preference who pays for what or in what form (cash, check, credit card). Often times if the couple still have a shared bank account, credit card or other asset, the cost can be paid for out of a shared account. If the couple no longer or never did share finances then the couple has to decide who is paying for what.
At Westfield Mediation, LLC we address our fee before your first meeting, but do not decide for you how to pay for it. We can certainly help the couple figure this out, but ultimately it is the couple’s decision. Sometimes, people need a payment plan to better budget a larger fee to coincide with their paychecks. Many times, couples each pay their portion of the fee that week by separate checks. Other times one person pays for it all every time. There is no standard way of how you must pay for mediation. Just another wonderful way divorce mediation is flexible and can work with you and your situation.
For more information on divorce mediation, please contact Randi M. Albert, JD, or Michelle Weinberg, M. Ed., Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, at Westfield Mediation, LLC at 908.913.0373. View our website at www.westfieldnjmediation.com or email us at [email protected].
Overall the cost of divorce mediation is really significantly less than a litigated divorce. But it is not free. And the cost of paying for this service needs to be addressed. The mediator has no preference who pays for what or in what form (cash, check, credit card). Often times if the couple still have a shared bank account, credit card or other asset, the cost can be paid for out of a shared account. If the couple no longer or never did share finances then the couple has to decide who is paying for what.
At Westfield Mediation, LLC we address our fee before your first meeting, but do not decide for you how to pay for it. We can certainly help the couple figure this out, but ultimately it is the couple’s decision. Sometimes, people need a payment plan to better budget a larger fee to coincide with their paychecks. Many times, couples each pay their portion of the fee that week by separate checks. Other times one person pays for it all every time. There is no standard way of how you must pay for mediation. Just another wonderful way divorce mediation is flexible and can work with you and your situation.
For more information on divorce mediation, please contact Randi M. Albert, JD, or Michelle Weinberg, M. Ed., Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, at Westfield Mediation, LLC at 908.913.0373. View our website at www.westfieldnjmediation.com or email us at [email protected].
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