Manhattan Mediation Lawyer

Mediation Attorney in Manhattan and NYC

Mediation – A Great, But Dangerous, Process

Mediation is a magical process! People with personal or business disputes, who have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees, walk into our conference room and a short four or five hours later walk out shaking hands. The mediator serves as a facilitator, keeping temperatures cool and the tone civil in the negotiations, and helps the parties crystallize their thoughts and needs. The mediator also helps the parties brainstorm possible solutions and workouts to resolve their divorce. Mediation empowers people by leaving them in full control of their dispute, allowing the parties themselves to determine what resolution is “right” for the two of them. The job of the mediator is not to tell the parties what to do or to tell them what is right or to protect one from the other; rather the mediator is there as a neutral between them, helping them communicate effectively with one another, keeping the temperature cool, and exploring settlement options. Manhattan Mediation Lawyer Chaim Steinberger has been successfully mediating for more than 25 years, has helped people with disputes large and small settle them, and he will help you resolve your dispute amicably, whether as a mediator between you and your spouse, or whether as a lawyer representing and advising you in the mediation. ^[1]

Getting Skilled Legal Guidance is Critical

Many people believe that the advantage of mediation is that the parties only have to hire and pay for one lawyer (the mediator) instead of two lawyers–one for each of the individual parties. That, however, makes the mediation dangerous. Mediation, as an unconstrained process and in the extreme case, takes from the reasonable and rewards the intransigent. A party, who is not schooled in the substantive law that controls the matter-in-controversy and does not know how these issues are “typically” resolved, does not know if they are being taken advantage of and to what degree. The mediation may seem to be making progress, but all of the progress might favor only the other party. A party may inadvertently give up their ability to be self-supporting for the next decade or two, or might leave their ability to maintain a strong relationship with their children in a precarious state because they did not know they were being taken advantage of. In another instance, a woman called us complaining that the mediation perpetuated her spouse’s abuse of her. See, video of “My Killer Eyebrows.”

Mediation, therefore, is safe only when each party has a Manhattan family law attorney at their side keeping a keen watchful eye on what is happening. On every concession and trade-off made, and what is being received in return. If a client is about to make an ill-advised concession the lawyer might ask the mediator for a brief break to consult with the client and ensure the client is fully aware of the ramifications of the concession they are about to make before making it.

How Mediation Helps

The beauty and advantage of mediation is that it doesn’t further deteriorate or traumatize the parties’ already damaged relationship. At the least, it preserves their ability to co-parent their children and work cooperatively for the benefit of their children. Effective mediation can demonstrate and teach the parties new, improved ways of communicating with one another, in a civil courteous manner, each respectful of the other’s needs and station. Indeed, mediation also has the ability to begin a healing process in which each party can hear and be heard often as they haven’t been able to do for many years before their divorce.

 

Contact a Manhattan Mediation Lawyer For Assistance

Chaim has served as a mediator in New York for more than twenty-five years, resolving complex commercial matters and intractable family disputes. In one recent divorce case he mediated, the wife’s lawyer walked out at the end of the mediation announcing that although she had earned a master’s degree in social work, she’d never seen anybody do what Chaim did at that mediation. In fact, several weeks later the lawyers reported that the parties decided not to even get divorced. Use Chaim’s skills and knowledge to ensure that you get the result you desire and deserve! Reach out to us today by calling (212) 964-6100 or fill out our convenient online contact form. We are standing by to help you.

1 It is important to recognize that a mediator must remain neutral and cannot represent one party. Therefore, before calling our office, consider whether you want Chaim to act as a neutral mediator (and then call him with both parties on the phone), or as an advisor and representative for you alone. If you want Chaim to serve as a neutral mediator, he cannot engage in conversations with you alone without the other [adverse] party on the phone.