Long Island Divorce Mediators and Child Custody Agreements

Partnering with a certified Divorce Mediator and Long Island divorce attorney specializing in family law helps divorcing parents prepare for co-parenting after the divorce. Working within New York statutes, professional divorce mediators can help parents overcome obstacles that often prevent couples from reaching an agreement on their own.

Except in extreme cases, such as those involving abandonment or abuse, for most Long Islanders, the parenting partnership continues after the marriage ends. While living arrangements change, legal decisions shouldn’t prevent preserving parent-child relationships. Creating post-divorce visitation and child support plans that facilitate healthy communication is in the best interest of the child�"or children �" and both parents.Working as a team, spouses and professional divorce mediators on Long Island work together to craft a detailed parenting roadmap designed to reduce stress and avoid litigation. A comprehensive plan may cover sensitive subjects like holiday and vacation visits, attending school programs and how to include new adults that a child or children will spend time with child or children after the divorce.

Including Children in the Divorce Mediation Process

Divorce is unsettling for most children. Not understanding what the future holds is stressful and may cause some children to withdraw or act out. Including older children in the decision-making process enables them to ask questions and empowers them to adjust to life-after-divorce quicker. In some cases, Long Island divorce mediators may recommend children meet with a child psychologist or other mental health care provider before inviting them to attend negotiating sessions.

Addressing Challenging Divorce Issues

Long Island divorce attorneys and divorce mediators approach post-divorce plan development with sensitivity and compassion. Often, however, there are issues such as paternity that particularly strain negotiation efforts.

In New York, either party may request paternity testing from conception until the child reaches the legal age of 21. Suffolk County and Nassau County courts follow guidelines established by The New York Family Court Act, which allows DNA testing unless the court finds that such testing would not be “in the best interest of the child.”

During a litigation divorce model, Long Island couples must ask the judge for permission to initiate DNA testing. When a man has already accepted a child, or children, as his natural heirs by assuming financial and emotional support, the court may not allow a DNA marker study.The basis for the decision is grounded in the premise that the man had an opportunity to establish paternity before establishing a parent-child relationship and did not see the necessity. In other words, the family court judge may not allow or order tests that directly impact parent-child relationships based solely on a desire to evade personal responsibility or set aside parental rights, including visitation and shared custody. By engaging a divorce mediator, couples may be able to address this decision themselves and overcome other onerous obstacles without court intervention.

Proactive and Voluntary: Parenting Rights and ResponsibilitiesWorking with an experienced, skilled lawyer and Divorce Mediator on Long Island gives parents options to voluntarily agree to co-parenting arrangements and not risk having to comply with burdensome restrictions established by the court. Research indicates that the majority of spouses, some estimates are as high as 70 percent, reach agreeable solutions through divorce mediation.

Suffolk County and Nassau County courts encourage divorce mediation as a first attempt to reach equitable solutions. Family Law and Divorce Lawyer Robert E. Hornberger, Esq., a director of the Collaborative Law Association of New York, Inc., concurs. Mr. Hornberger promotes divorce mediation �" a tool that is less expensive, protects individual privacy and includes skilled legal representation without going to court -- as a valuable tool for couples pursuing divorce or separation on Long Island.

For more information about Divorce Attorney Long Island and Divorce Mediation Nassau County Please visit: Divorce-longisland.com