Mediation in Contested
Divorce Disputes

Bishop Law Office, P.C., provides mediation services. However, be advised that attorneys cannot act as both your mediator and your individual attorney as this would be a conflict of interest. Bishop Law Office, P.C. can provide mediation services for you and the other party, but once this is done, we would be unable to represent you if an agreement was not reached in mediation. If you would like us to be your attorneys, we can attempt to settle your case as your attorneys, or if you would like to attempt mediation, we can always refer you to a good mediator for purposes of attempting to settle the issues. We will be happy to discuss the alternatives with you.

Should I try mediation?

Mediation may be an excellent alternative to assist you in resolving all or a portion of the issues in your divorce proceeding. If you are interested in retaining a private mediator, the Firm highly recommends that you retain a qualified family law attorney licensed in the State Of Arizona to serve as your mediator. The mediator works for both parties (i.e. husband and wife / father and mother), and thus cannot later represent either party as his or her attorney in the event that the mediation is unsuccessful.

There are many ?mediators? who claim that they can assist you who are not licensed attorneys. You often pay as much if not more for these unlicensed and unqualified services. Sometimes, the documents that they help draft cause more harm than good.

Some psychologists and counselors also serve as private mediators. They can often provide you with excellent services regarding custody and parenting issues, although many of them do not address child support, property and other financial issues.

The Superior Court Of Arizona?s Conciliation Services provides free mediation services for purposes of custody and parenting issues.