Many divorcing or separating couples struggle to negotiate financial agreements, especially if they have children. This is problematic for couples with joint custody. Many well-intentioned family members and friends can provide bad counsel, and Google “fair financial settlement” will certainly yield many different responses and further uncertainty. Well-meaning family and friends often provide contradictory counsel. Contradictory counsel abounds, and even relatives and friends can give harmful advice. This blog post explains how mediation can help you reach a fair financial settlement. This strategy works 95% of the time. We’re aware.

The amount of mediation meetings depends on your financial condition.

It will be to your advantage to offer as much information as possible about your mortgages, property assessments, insurance or endowment plans, and other investments.

The mediator will also question about overdue bills. They’ll ask about your financial condition, which may help you plan for the future. They’ll question your finances.

Start gathering financial information well before the first mediation session.

Family law ensures that your long-term requirements are satisfied and that any arrangement prioritises the children’s care.
We can help cohabiting couples who want to use mediation to discuss their money. Even though cohabiting couples don’t have the same legal protection as married couples, the mediation process might nonetheless evaluate the couple’s money. In today’s modern world, cohabitation is more popular than marriage. Unmarried couples who cohabit might share duties and finances like married couples for years. If you and your spouse have chosen to separate after living together, mediation may help you sort out how to handle your money in the future.

A chat about your money and solutions might be beneficial in mediation. During mediation, many people might reach an agreement regarding the distribution of funds after a divorce. When it comes to financial mediation, one of the most often concerns we hear is, “Which cash and assets are protected, and what should the client bring?”

You can compromise on anything you deem acceptable. For a financial consent order to be granted, the court must agree that you’ve reached a reasonable deal. If the court doesn’t think you’ve reached a reasonable agreement, it won’t issue the order.

If both of you have submitted a detailed financial disclosure and sought family mediation or a family law counsel, the court may grant your request. If you can show that both are done, the court may allow your application.

One option is Capitol family mediation. Family mediation is often required before requesting a financial order from the court, and for good cause. In the next section, we’ll explain financial mediation.

How does financial mediation work?

MIAM

First, we’ll each have a private discussion. MIAM stands for Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting. We must complete this procedure with each of you separately (though you may bring a support person), either online or at one of our family mediation offices. If you have questions, please contact us. Most individuals think holding this first MIAM online is more convenient and faster.

Our website’s “What is Family Mediation” page has a flowchart that details the procedure.

After you and your spouse complete MIAMs, you can finalise your financial disclosure, unless an issue needs emergency mediation. Until the situation is resolved, mediation will continue. Financial Emergency

Some married couples may have a mortgage payment they can’t afford, along with other critical expenditures. This must be done before they may disclose financial details or split assets. In certain situations, you and your family mediator may opt to participate in joint mediation to explore and negotiate a resolution to the pressing issue(s).

Disclosing

If there’s no emergency, you’ll have to file a joint financial declaration.

You may publish financial information in three ways.
Form E disclosures

This comprises bank statements spanning a year. Complete this form to obtain a financial order from the court. Each party must complete and sign their own Form E, certifying its accuracy. If you supply inaccurate information on your Form E, you may be committing fraud, and obtaining a financial order in court may be difficult. Do not give false information on your Form E to avoid difficulties. Here, you can view or download the form.

If you can’t agree on the method of disclosure, you must file Form E, option 1, as a court expects. If you can’t agree, complete Form E, choice 2.

Why must we provide you financial details?

If you want a legally binding agreement, consider a financial consent order. Only by writing a legally binding agreement can you guarantee a clean separation and protect both parties. You must both engage in this financial disclosure to get a court-approved consent decree that cannot be questioned or reversed. We’ll consider the order authentic after that.

Financial disclosure acknowledgment and consent

This is important to the procedure. You and your partner must make a financial disclosure and agree on it before seeking a financial settlement. The judge will order you to comply if you don’t. If you behave unfairly or irritate the process, they might consider this when allocating legal expenses and considering the case’s conclusion. This is true even if you’re operating illegally.

Your financial mediator will walk you through your financial disclosures and ensure you both understand them. Because it’s impossible to continue financial mediation without a comprehensive financial picture, we ask that you have all of your financial information, including pension values, on hand. It’s hard to continue mediation without a complete financial picture. If the topic is parenting, don’t mention this.

Read more about make the background transparent 

If they had all the material from the outset of mediation, they may have developed opinions after being fully informed. Both might have saved money and time by doing this.

Back-and-forth disclosures

The final stage is to exchange financial information. This step can occur before or after the financial disclosure session indicated previously in this paragraph. This step is optional. Your financial declarations won’t be analysed, and the mediator won’t store bank statements or other paperwork. This covers all mediation proofs. They’ll keep track of everything you’ve sent and keep a copy of each transaction.

If you and the other side communicate financial information before mediation, you can have legal assistance. Your scenario may benefit from this. If not, you can consult this information between sessions if you need a legal compass. You can’t disagree if this is true.

How should we split assets and obligations?

Now, answer the following question:

“How can we share our assets and obligations fairly so we can both go forward and satisfy our needs?”

If you and your mediator can work together to find a solution, you’ll have a higher chance of achieving a just, decent, and manageable agreement than if you ask, “How can I get the most out of this situation?” If you and your mediator can work together to find a solution, you will have a far higher chance of establishing a just, good, and To be honest, family law does not support the second question.

Your mediator will identify your needs and how to meet them using available resources. After that, they’ll assist you to reach a deal. The chart below shows the criteria a court considers when reaching a settlement and those that are rarely considered. This might help you prioritize.