California Divorce Mediation

Two separate attorneys for an uncontested divorce typically run $6,000 to $15,000 combined. Mediation runs a single flat fee, paid once and shared between you. No hourly retainer, no surprise invoices, and no second attorney across the table billing for the same work twice.

Mediation lets you build a settlement that fits your life. A judge does not know your kids, your work schedule, or how you and your spouse have always handled the holidays. You do. Mediation gives you room to design custody schedules, support arrangements, and property divisions that reflect your actual situation rather than what fits inside a court’s default templates.

Litigation forces you to take adversarial positions against someone you may need to co-parent with for decades. Mediation lets you finish the marriage without lighting a fire on the way out. The process is built to reduce conflict, not amplify it, and most clients leave it ready to function as parents and former partners rather than entrenched opponents.

Because it works. For couples who agree on the major terms and want a clean exit, mediation is faster, cheaper, less damaging to your kids, and substantially less stressful than the alternative. After twenty years inside the family court system, we have seen what litigation costs people. Mediation is the better tool whenever it fits.

You have two options. The first is to treat the matter as all-or-nothing and litigate every issue in court. The second is to enter a judgment on the issues you have agreed on and submit only the remaining issues to the court for decision. The second route is usually less expensive and faster, because the court only has to address what is actually in dispute. We can help you decide which approach fits your situation.

It happens. If you decide to stop the divorce mid-process, the case is dismissed and you remain married. Any portion of the flat fee tied to work not yet performed is refunded to you.

You can end the mediation at any point. The flat fee is prorated based on work completed and any unearned portion is refunded. From that point forward, you would each retain separate counsel to handle the contested portions in court.

No. Under California Rules of Professional Conduct, rule 2.4, Dan Sweeney serves as a neutral attorney-mediator, not as either party’s individual attorney. He works with both of you to draft documents that reflect your joint decisions. Each of you is encouraged to have a separate attorney review the Marital Settlement Agreement before signing.

No. Court filing fees are paid directly to the court (currently $435 to $450 per spouse for first appearance, varies by county). If either of you qualifies based on income, we will assist with fee waiver applications at no additional charge.

That is up to you. Some couples split it evenly. It is not uncommon for one spouse with more available resources to front the entire amount. Many couples agree to allocate the fee equitably in the Marital Settlement Agreement, so the cost is accounted for as part of the overall property settlement. Any of those approaches works.

The mediation covers everything required to finalize a divorce involving minor children: custody and visitation arrangements, child support calculated under California guideline, the Declaration Under UCCJEA (FL-105), and parenting plan terms. The court will not need either of you to appear if the parenting terms are agreed and properly documented. Contested custody issues fall outside the mediation scope.