It is mediation, but it acknowledges there are larger social and institutional influences that can come into play with conflict.

At our consultation I will go over the process, explain what I need from you to move forward, and answer your questions about the process. I will also ask about what issues we will be addressing, but I would not expect that we would dive into the substance of those issues yet.

Following that consultation, if the two of you choose to move forward, I will send you legal services agreements to review and execute along with the information to place funds in your trust account. Any unused funds are returned to you.

Once those formalities are taken care of I will send you both your homework based on what we discussed at your consultation, and we will schedule your first mediation session. I would anticipate the first session being around 2 hours. In some simple cases we can resolve or narrow the issues considerably. For others, we will set another session about 2 weeks out. We will continue to do so as we narrow the issues.

In some complex cases we will separate out our sessions: for example, we will spend one session only focusing on custody/parenting time and another session on divisions of assets and debts. In other cases we can knock out an entire agreement in one meeting.

The exact timeline and process is very case-specific, and we will come up with that process cooperatively during our consultation.

Maybe. A lot of people say you will save money, but that’s not always the case. It is possible to be unsuccessful going the mediation route first and you still end up in a contested case to resolve the remaining disputed items. You know you and the other party best. If you think both of you are ready and willing to come to the table and really dig in and get to work towards a resolution, then there is a good chance you can and by doing so you will very likely save money in the end.

One thing often lost in the question about saving money is what else you save. You can save stress, the unknown, and dragging your private lives through the public system. You gain control of your own future. If you have children, if the two of you can come to an agreement for custody and parenting time you can tailor it to your lives and it is much more likely each of you will follow that agreement into the future and reduce the risk of future modifications.

The savings go beyond your wallet.

Every case is unique, but I can likely give you a ballpark range at our initial consultation.

I charge my hourly rate ($270/hour) for my time spent on your mediation, including reviewing documents, meeting with both of you, and ultimately drafting all the pleadings if you would like me to. There is also a $301 filing fee paid to the courts for the filing of you documents.

My cost will largely depend on how many meeting we require to come to an agreement.

If you have a fairly low-conflict matter that merely needs a mediator to facilitate your agreements, draft all your legal documents, submit them to the court, and then ensure that the judgment is entered, I would anticipate that to be around $3,000 (including the $301 filing fee).

It is reasonable for parties to split the cost of my services, with each paying half of the consultation and half of the initial retainer. For some matters one party has the financial resources to pay the entire cost. We’ll talk about that during the consultation to make sure everyone is on the same page.

We sure can, but we do not have to as we can also use the phone or Zoom. That means I can mediate for parties in separate locations and outside of NE Portland.

We can also do shuttle mediation, meaning that the two of you are not in the same space but I go back and forth between you. If you are more comfortable with shuttle mediation, Zoom might be the best choice as we can quickly move back and forth and take breaks in your space as needed.

While I can technically provide mediation services for parties anywhere, I can only draft legal pleadings for Oregon cases where one party is a resident in Oregon and the case is goign to be filed in Oregon. For cases outside of Oregon I can provide you mediation services, including a written summary of agreements reached.

You do not, but you are welcome to, and even encouraged to do so that you receive legal advice as I cannot represent two people.

Again, it depends. The biggest indicator is the pace the two of you move at and how long it takes to come to an agreement. Once we have that, I can typically have all the pleadings turned around to you both within 1-2 weeks for your approval/signatures.

Once I submit your judgment to the court for filing it is in their hands, with counties working at different speeds (some take days to sign it and some take weeks).

It is possible that we could move as fast as one month from our initial meeting to having the judgment submitted to the court. It is also possible this entire process could take 6 months to a year.

Assuming the two of you come to an agreement that I submit to the court, you should not have to appear in court. If you cannot come to an agreement and find yourself in a contested case, you may have to go to court.

Yes, I can. Because I am an attorney I can also provide that service, making it even more economical than having a non-attorney mediator that cannot draft legal documents.

No, I cannot. If you do not already each have your own attorneys, you will each need to find one. I am happy to work cooperatively with your attorneys and continue to mediate narrow issues that come up.

I mediate family law matters: divorce; legal separation; modifications of spousal support, custody, and parenting time; and anything else that falls into that area. I am also open to non-family law matters if I feel I am equiped to handle the task. If you aren’t sure, please ask me!

Both of you have to be willing to move forward. Assuming you are, schedule a consultation here or email me at krista@mancusolawllc.com to set up a consultation and provide me with the names of both parties (this is critical for me to check for conflicts). I often have additional availability (including last-minute availability) if you email me. Please indicate that you are seeking a consultation for mediation.

Please do not call me as I do not want to speak to either party until I have completed a conflicts check and there is an agreement to move forward as a mediation consultation.