Wheaton Mediation and Collaborative Law Attorneys

Lawyers for Collaborative Law and Mediation in DuPage County

Mediation is a positive, cost-efficient alternative to litigation that is used in many divorce and family law cases. It is designed to help the participants reach an agreement in a cooperative and rational manner. It can also help minimize negative emotions and conflict, which can escalate when people are tied up in the court system.

With the cooperation of both people, mediation can be used as a powerful tool to preserve a family's financial resources, and more importantly, to keep families out of litigating in the court system. Mediation also aids parties in re-establishing their communication skills, which can ultimately allow them to take charge of their lives and the decisions affecting their respective futures.

Mediation is a confidential process. During mediation, parties develop a plan to best serve their futures. Mediation is intended to supplement the litigation system. In mediation, parties are treated as cooperative adults who are restructuring their lives. The mediator acts as a neutral facilitator. The mediator's role includes: assisting parties in identifying parenting issues; assisting parties in problem solving; assisting parties in exploring alternative solutions; and helping parties to reach an agreement.

The issues may be as monumental as joint versus sole child custody or as minor as which party will retain the washing machine and dryer from the marital residence when dividing marital property.

Court Ordered Mediation

Court Ordered Mediation is a 3-hour confidential process. During mediation, parents develop a parenting plan to best serve the family's future and, most importantly, to serve the best interests of their children.

Court Ordered Mediation is intended to supplement the litigation process, which sometimes casts parties as opponents and creates an adversarial relationship. In Court Ordered Mediation, participants are treated as cooperative adults who are restructuring their lives and the lives of their children.

Voluntary Mediation

Whether a litigant is represented by a lawyer or represents his/her own interests, voluntary mediation may prove helpful. As with Court Ordered Mediation, voluntary mediation is used as a supplement to the litigation process to assist participants in coming to an amicable resolution for whatever issue they may be facing. The participants may take as many hours as may be necessary to resolve their differences and, as always, it is a confidential process.

Do I Still Need an Attorney?

The mediator in no way replaces your attorney. If the parties intend to hire counsel, they are strongly encouraged to meet with their respective attorneys prior to the first mediation session.

Certified Mediator

Lynn M. Mirabella is a certified mediator. She brings a wealth of experience, both personal and professional, to her mediation cases. Licensed to practice law in 1987 and concentrating her practice in the area of family law for more than 30 years, she is a highly qualified mediator. While a majority of Ms. Mirabella's mediation cases are by court appointment, she also receives referrals from other family law practitioners and from pro se litigants choosing the mediation process. Lynn Mirabella's proven success record in mediation cases makes her a logical choice for appointment or referral.

Collaborative Family Law

What Is Collaborative Family Law?

"Collaborative Family Law" is the shared belief by all participants that it is in the best interests of the participants and their families to voluntarily commit themselves to avoiding adversarial proceedings. This conflict resolution process, which does not rely on a court-imposed resolution but instead relies on an atmosphere of honesty, cooperation, integrity and professionalism, is geared toward the future well-being of the family.

The goals of collaborative law are to maximize settlement options for the benefit of all participants, to increase the abilities of the participants to communicate in a post-divorce relationship, and to minimize, if not eliminate, the negative economic, social, and emotional consequences of adversarial court proceedings for the participants and their families. In committing to the collaborative law process, the participants agree to seek a better way to resolve their differences justly and equitably and to strive for shared solutions and self-determination to resolve the issues surrounding the dissolution of marriage.

The Attorney's Role

The attorney's role in collaborative law is to provide an organized framework that will facilitate and assist participants in reaching agreements. The parties' respective attorneys will help the participants communicate with each other, identify issues, collect and help interpret data, locate experts, ask questions, make observations, suggest options, and help the participants express their goals, interests, and feelings. Further, the attorneys will check the workability of proposed solutions and prepare and file all required documents to finalize the matter in court.

Children's Issues

When resolving issues related to sharing the enjoyment of and responsibility for children, the participants, their attorneys, and other experts can make every reasonable effort to reach amicable solutions that promote the best interest of the children. The participants agree to act quickly to mediate and resolve all differences related to the children in a manner that will promote a caring, loving, and involved relationship between the children and each parent.

Certified Collaborative Family Law Practitioner

Lynn M. Mirabella is a certified Collaborative Family Law practitioner. Licensed to practice in 1987, Ms. Mirabella is a former county prosecutor who now almost entirely devotes her practice to family law. Contact an experienced mediator or collaborative family law practitioner at our firm, Mirabella, Kincaid, Frederick & Mirabella, LLC, by calling 630-665-7300.

Our collaborative law and mediation attorneys serve clients in the western suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, including Wheaton, Naperville, Oak Brook, and St. Charles, and throughout DuPage County, Will County, and Kendall County.