Mediation For Expats – A Long Term Solution For Child Custody Disputes

This article was authored by Hero Lomas

Mediation for Expats - Why children benefit when parents Mediate

Mediation and other forms of dispute resolution are becoming increasingly popular to resolve child custody disputes involving expats. Such cases were once believed to be too contentious to benefit from such methods of settlement. Mediation via Skype or video link, have opened this method of settlement to British families living abroad. Most expat couples that have used mediation, have found it to be cost effective, and a quick and simple process, allowing them to resolve disputes effectively to reach a long term solution. It is widely thought that negotiated or mediated arrangements for children following divorce, last longer and are more effective than a court imposed decision.

Mediation for Child Abduction or Relocation

The Reunite International Child Abduction Centre developed and trialled a mediation pilot scheme for use in cases of international parental child abduction1. In all cases the child had been retained in the UK and the other parent was pursuing court proceedings for its return. Of the 28 cases they mediated 75% of them were able to reach agreement as to where the child should live and the importance of a continuing relationship with the other parent.

Mediation can also be very useful in international relocation cases. While the parents' positions can seem polarised, if details can be negotiated, an agreement can often be reached. When the children will see the left behind parent and where, telephone contact, who will pay for flights and what school the children will go to are the sort of issues which will need to be decided.

These sorts of cases are often able to be resolved without the expense of court proceedings and much more quickly. That is of crucial importance if a child is not seeing a parent or has been removed from their primary carer. A further advantage of a mediated settlement is that parents are much more likely to abide by the terms of an agreement which they have signed up to rather than one which has been imposed upon them. Most importantly in these cases damage to the child is limited as continued conflict between the parents is avoided.

The International Mediation Centre for Family Conflict and Child Abduction (MiKK e.V.) is a Berlin based NGO which organises mediations for parents in any cross border custody, contact or child abduction dispute. They use expert family mediators who specialise in cross...