Law Commons^™

Promise And Problems In Divorce Mediation, Steven T. Knuppel

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In the past two decades, mediation in general has gained increasing acceptance in the legal community.' "[T]he search for alternative methods of resolving disputes has burgeoned to 'a movement'."2 In the divorce context, particularly, mediation has been seen by some as a more suitable process than the adversary system. 3 Proponents of mediation assert that the adversary system involves debilitating expense, frustrating delay, 4 and fails to address the emotional needs of the parties.5 Adversarial tactics often aggravate rather than resolve spousal differences, 6 though an amicable settlement might be in the best interests of both parties, especially when there …