MEDIATION

Offering support while navigating agreement and ensuring comfort

we understand that sometimes a couple is best served having one divorce professional help them navigate the conversations and decisions that need to be made. As a mediator, we serve a neutral role for both parties, where we hold the space for these conversations and help a couple navigate the divorce process as efficiently and amicably as possible.

At Kalscheur Conscious Family Law

Mindful Mediation

Our Mindful Mediation approach starts with each participant completing an Individual Support Worksheet. The worksheet takes a holistic and values-based approach to preparing for what might be the most difficult conversations spouses ever have. We then schedule individual meetings with each spouse to go over their goals and concerns, to assess if additional support is needed for an individual or the mediation process, and to prepare for our first joint meeting together. After the individual sessions are complete, your mediator will set out a plan for mediation, schedule the first joint session, and provide an agenda for that meeting. The intentionality of this process assists you and the mediator to help move us from stuck places that will inevitably arise back to a values based, options generating conversation. 

Book Your Mediation Today!

Mediation is one of the most cost effective approaches to navigating a divorce as peacefully and amicably as possible. Holding the space for couples to find a peaceful outcome and come through the other side feeling empowered by the decisions they made is our mission at Kalscheur Conscious Family Law. If you have questions and want to learn more about whether mediation is the right fit for you, please contact us for a free 15 minute phone call or 30 minute zoom consultation with both spouses. You can also learn more by reading our Mediation FAQs below.

  • Mediation is a dispute resolution process where the parties hire a neutral facilitator (mediator) to assist them in reaching a resolution to conflict. The mediator is hired by both parties, and the process requires agreement and participation by both parties to be successful.

  • At KCFL, we are focused on making sure each client and each participant to mediation has the amount of support they need to feel confident and as comfortable as possible. Our Mindful Mediation approach starts with each person completing an Individual Support Worksheet. The worksheet takes a holistic and values-based approach to preparing for what might be the most difficult conversations spouses ever have. We then schedule individual meetings with each spouse to go over their goals and concerns, to assess if additional support is needed for an individual or the mediation process, and to prepare for our first joint meeting together. After the individual sessions are complete, your KCFL mediator will set out a plan for mediation, schedule the first joint session, and provide an agenda for that meeting.

  • While there is no requirement that you have attorneys for mediation, family law conflicts are, in part, a legal process, and you may want to discuss certain legal topics and obtain legal advice from an attorney. This is one type of support we will discuss at your initial individual meetings. Moreover, if you are mediating a divorce, at the conclusion of your mediation, there are several legal documents that must be submitted to a judge to finalize the divorce. Most people appreciate having attorneys prepare and guide them through these steps of the process.

  • No. When we serve as mediators, we are necessarily neutral and representing both parties to a dispute. Attorneys can only be hired by one person and cannot represent both parties where the law perceives their interests to be adverse. In Illinois, spouses experiencing family law conflicts are perceived to have adverse interests—even if you are in full agreement on how you wish to proceed. By becoming an attorney, we would jeopardize our neutrality and therefore our ability to be successful mediators.

  • While we will work diligently to make sure you receive all of the information and support you need to make informed decisions, we will not provide you with legal advice. Legal advice is distinct from legal information because we would be advising you on what to do with the information; doing so jeopardizes our neutrality as mediators. If obtaining legal advice feels essential to making a decision, then we will help you find mediation friendly attorneys to assist you.

  • Mediation can either occur at our office in the Ravenswood neighborhood of Chicago or over Zoom. We will assess what works best for everyone during our initial meetings.

  • Because both parties are retaining us for mediation, there is a presumption that both parties will be equally (50/50) responsible for the fees. However, we can discuss specific concerns about his during our initial meetings. We use an hourly rate of $365 for mediation, and we typically ask for an initial retainer of about $2,500.