About Divorce & Family Mediations

Working together to find equitable solutions
Divorce & Family Mediations Has One Goal:

“To help make the divorce process
easier for you and your family.”

woman in mediation divorce counseling

We achieve that goal by:

  • Making the process affordable and time flexible.
  • Helping parents learn to effectively co-parent
  • Helping your family navigate the challenges of divorce calmly while moving into a positive future.

When lawyers are hired to hash out a settlement for you, a battle mentality often develops. You learn to treat your spouse as the enemy, all while spending thousands of dollars you could be saving for the future.

Divorce Smarter, Not Harder

Divorce and Family Mediations wants to streamline the divorce process and empower clients to take charge of their futures. Our method involves moving mandated mediation to the beginning of the divorce process, preparing families to go forward before emotions run high, costs are out of control, and too much time is wasted. Once you have created and signed the binding Mediated Settlement Agreement, it can go to an attorney who will draw up the Divorce Decree, along with any other legal documents required for the divorce. This attorney will represent you to the Court.

Only couples in agreement to divorce and with uncontested issues are appropriate for the Divorce and Family Mediations divorce method. Couples who do not want to or cannot work together need to hire attorneys.

What to Expect from Divorce & Family Mediations

Mediation

Together, as a couple, you will agree to use Divorce and Family Mediations. If any of your children are minors, you will develop a custom Parenting Plan which meets your unique and individual needs. While you are practicing your parenting plan, you will also work on developing a property agreement. When you feel your Parenting Plan and Property Agreement are as you like, you both will sign, binding you to the agreement.

This Mediated Settlement Agreement will be used by the attorney of your choice to develop your Divorce Decree and any supporting documents for Court approval. The attorneys we work with will honor your agreement and process it with the Court for an additional fee.

Counseling

Creating a successful post-divorce life begins with the decision to care for everyone involved. This includes knowing the potential consequences, both positive and negative, and being prepared to meet them constructively. When children are part of your divorce, our goal is to help you promote their sense of stability and security with a positive outlook on life – now and years down the road. Our process includes four counseling sessions (shared equally between the couple) for couples with no minor children, and co-parenting education for couples with children, which is frequently required by the court for the benefit of your children.

two parents and child at family mediation session

How can we help?

We reduce the wear and tear of divorce on all family members.
We help your family move into a positive future.
We help families calmly navigate the perils of divorce.

Our Mediation Process

The Counseling Process

Marriage, due to its intimate nature, can prove challenging to move away from, so preparing for a successful post-divorce future begins with prioritizing the feelings of everyone involved. Knowing the potential consequences of divorce, both positive and negative, and being ready to meet those consequences constructively are crucial to everyone going through such a significant event.

Divorce and Family Mediations believes that sometimes a professional is needed to help you deal with the stresses, changes, losses, and sadness of divorce. That is why our process includes counseling for couples without minor children, and co-parenting sessions for each parent individually, led by a professional therapist.

If children are involved in your divorce, our goal is to help you promote a sense of stability and security for them, with a positive outlook on life – now and years down the road. Our process includes co-parenting education, which is not only beneficial to you and your partner’s relationship with your children, but also frequently required by the court when filing for a divorce.

The Mediation Process

You control the process that Divorce and Family Mediations offers.

If any of your children are minors, you will develop a custom parenting plan that meets both of your individual needs. While you are practicing your parenting plan, you will also work on developing a property agreement. When a consensus is reached on the parenting plan and property agreement, both individuals will sign and be bound to each contract.

An attorney of your choice will use the Mediated Settlement Agreement to finalize your Divorce Decree and develop any supporting documents for Court approval. The attorneys we work with will also process it with the Court for an additional fee.

The Legal Process

You or your partner will file your Petition for Divorce as a Pro Se Litigant, a Latin phrase meaning “for oneself” or “on one’s own behalf.” Divorce and Family Mediations recommends that an attorney be hired to draw up the Divorce Decree and any legal documents pertaining to the divorce, as well as to file the final Divorce Decree with the Court. However, if the couple wants to file their own papers with the Court, this is perfectly legal.

The Bexar County Courthouse makes arrangements for those Pro Se Litigants choosing to file for themselves. Divorce and Family Mediations does not assist with the filing.

Legal questions will be answered by attorneys who work with Divorce and Family Mediations, but they are not involved in the process until the Mediated Settlement Agreement is signed. At this point, together, the couple will decide who will be represented, and by which attorney. The attorney can fill out the paperwork and file it with the Court.

About Melynda

Melynda Zoë Gulley has been actively mediating couples since 1999, focusing on the emotional and interpersonal aspects of family relationships in order to provide a new way forward after divorce. Melynda has devoted over 1,500 hours to mediating for the San Antonio community and proudly served as president of the Texas Association of Mediators from 2013 to 2014. When Melynda isn’t preparing families for their new futures, she enjoys spending time with her four children, two grandchildren, and several grand-dogs.

Preserve your time, your money, and most importantly your relationships by working with Divorce & Family Mediations. Contact us here to schedule a meeting with Melynda today.

Professional Associations & Affiliations:
Alamo Area Mediators Association, Peacemakers Ministry, The Texas Association of Mediators, Texas Mediators Credentialing Association, Volunteer with the Bexar County Dispute Resolution Center

Award reading text: CAM 2020 Credentialed Advanced Mediation
Star Icon, Text: Texas Association of Mediators

We don’t see things as they are; we see them as we are.

- Anais Nin

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