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MEDIATION

Divorce & Family Law
Probate Disputes 
Business Disputes 
Employment Disputes


Contract Disputes
Landlord/Tenant Disputes
Misc. Other Legal Issues/Disputes 

Mediation is a voluntary, cooperative and confidential, non-adversarial process designed to assist and empower parties in coming to the terms of their own unique and creative resolutions/agreements facilitated by a skilled, neutral, third party, Mediator(s). Mediation ensures that the parties themselves have a direct hand in tailoring their own outcome specific to their facts and/or family situation, rather than those details being made by a third party or the Court who likely isn’t nearly as intimately familiar with your facts, circumstances and issues as well as you are.  

  • You are not bound to the rules of law and procedure
  • Mediation focuses on the future, rather than the past
  • Minimal time commitment - can opt out at anytime 
  • Pay as you go vs. provide an upfront retainer
  • Find closure and be able to navigate your respective roles, obligations and relationships going forward 

VOLUNTARY, COOPERATIVE & CONFIDENTIAL, NON-ADVERSARIAL PROCESS

 BENEFITS TO MEDIATION

“They helped me navigate through a very difficult and emotional time. They really understood what was important to me and what my goals were, and they were very creative in finding ways to help me achieve them. Kristine and Monique were extremely professional, but also genuinely cared about me, my children, and the outcome of my divorce agreement. My ex-husband and I were able to settle things amicably and we both walked away feeling that it was done fairly. Their billing/fees were always reasonable and transparent. They worked great together as a team, were very responsive, and always got back to me promptly with support and sound legal advice. I would trust them completely with any future legal matters that may arise for me, and would highly recommend them.”
-Leigh

TESTIMONIAL

  • Determining the issues; 
  • Clarifying and expressing your underlying 
       interests and common              goals; 
  • Acknowledging and resolving the areas in 
       which you may have                   differences; 
  • Helping you work through impasse; 
  • Creating options and alternatives to assist 
       you in reaching common           ground; 
  • Assisting you in settling your differences in 
      a way that will be mutually         beneficial to all 
      parties involved; and 
  • Memorializing your mediated agreement 
       into a Memorandum
       of Understanding.


  • Determining the issues; 
  • Clarifying and expressing your underlying 
       interests and common goals; 
  • Acknowledging and resolving the areas in 
       which you may have differences; 
  • Helping you work through impasse; 
  • Creating options and alternatives to assist 
       you in reaching common ground; 
  • Assisting you in settling your differences in 
      a way that will be mutually beneficial to all 
      parties involved; and 
  • Memorializing your mediated agreement 
       into a Memorandum of Understanding.


In addition to the above, Mediation can also provide the benefit of both time and cost savings in a conversation based collaborative environment that helps to spare parties of some of the otherwise unknowns, stress, expense and time that can be associated with traditional adversarial litigation. When helpful and depending on the client’s needs, the mediation process may also include consulting with the parties’ individual attorneys, if any, as well as experts in other fields such as Certified (Divorce) Financial Planners, Accountants and Mental Health professionals in order to assist in reaching the terms of a mediated agreement, otherwise known as a Memorandum of Understanding. 

Kristine and Monique are both certified mediators and strong advocates of mediation and alternative dispute resolution. 


OUR ROLE AS MEDIATOR(S) IS TO ASSIST YOU IN

COST SAVINGS & COLLABORATIVE

Monique and Kristine guide clients who are at all stages Divorce and Family Law matters, from pre-marriage advice and prenuptial agreements to strategic pre-divorce planning and consultation, as well as planning to protect one’s rights as a parent when sharing (or expecting) a minor child with a co-parent outside of a marriage through the divorce negotiation and finalization process to modifications down the road as circumstances may change. 

MEDIATION FAQ

We offer in person and virtual mediation services, which can be helpful, especially when one party may reside out of State.

No. While it is typically more effective to all be present, we can mediate individually one-on-one offering each party an equal period of time alone, especially in the cases of any imbalance of power. Moreover, at any point you can request a one-on-one opportunity to speak privately with the Mediator in a break-out session, called “a caucus”, following which, we would offer the other party an opportunity to speak privately before all coming back together.

No, but we will always recommend that each party make their own decision as to whether they would like to review the Memorandum of Understanding with an attorney before signing it.  

NO. In the event you need the terms of the MOU to become legally binding, you would need to work with an attorney outside the firm to have those terms memorialized and entered into a Court Order or Settlement Agreement. Although we are also attorneys, according to the existing Rhode Island rules which govern attorneys, we cannot thereafter perform the role of an attorney when we are retained as mediators, even after the mediation has completed.

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