What is Family Mediation?

MIAM stands for Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting, and it is an initial meeting between yourself and a qualified Family Mediator. The purpose of a MIAM is to assess whether your issues can be resolved through the use of Family Mediation, negating the need to take your matter to Court.

A Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM) is held between just you and the Mediator. The other party would not be present. The other party would also need to attend a MIAM to formally assess their suitability for Family Mediation and, assuming both assessments provide a favourable outcome, the Mediator will recommend pursuing Family Mediation as a way forward.

A 2020 survey undertaken by the Family Mediation Council showed that “Mediation is successful in over 70% of cases”. This means that in over 70% of cases, separating and divorcing couples were able to reach an outcome through the use of Family Mediation and without the need to take their matter through the expensive, stressful, and time-consuming Court process.

Although there are no strict rules over who pays for Family Mediation, it is typical for all costs to be shared equally. Your Family Mediator will set out the costs for Mediation at the outset so that you are aware of how much the mediation process will cost. The fees for mediation will vary depending on whether you are seeking mediation services for financial matters only, mediation services for children’s matters only, or mediation services for all matters. The costs for mediation will also be dependent upon the number of mediation sessions required to reach an outcome.

For eligible parties, vouchers towards the cost of mediation are available up to the value of £500 (claimed by the mediator on your behalf and apply only where discussions around child arrangements are required) through the Government’s Family Mediation Voucher Scheme.

There is no fixed term for how long family mediation takes. The process can take anywhere from just a few weeks to many months. How long mediation takes depends on the type and complexity of the issues needing to be resolved. Typically, however, Mediation achieves a quicker resolution than that of the traditional Court route, not to mention the reduction of costs and associated stress.

If mediation doesn’t work, then there are a few options. Arbitration is a good way of having a third-party preside over the facts of the case and make a decision on your behalf. The arbitrator will make a decision using the same judgement criteria as a Court however comes without the timescale considerations, the increased costs, and the ruling of a Judge when pursuing the court route. Arbitration dos require both partied to be amenable to this route to resolution. If this isn’t the case, then often litigation through the Courts is necessary.
 
Another way forward is an Early Neutral evaluation, or Collaborative Law, or having a private Judge (in financial matters) assist by providing an indication and guidance as to how the family assets should be shared.
 
Family Lawyers, and indeed the Ministry of Justice, are keen to keep divorce matters out of court. It is proven that the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution, which includes Mediation, Collaborate Law, and Arbitration, is a far quicker, cheaper, and less stressful route to resolution. This approach also fosters a better future relationship between the divorcing parties which is especially beneficial where children are involved.