Anyone can hang up a shingle and call herself a mediator. Make sure your mediator has been trained by an Academy of Family Mediators-approved training program. The basic Divorce Mediation training is 40 hours. Practitioner Members of the Academy are then required to take an additional 60 hours of advanced training, work with an approved Consultant for a minimum of 4 hours and obtain continuing education credits every two years of at least 20 hours. To assure a level of competence, it is a good idea to restrict yourself to Practitioner members.
Mediators often handle community and business disputes as well as divorce.
The issues involved in divorce are very specific and a certain level of knowledge about those issues is critical. Make sure the mediator has adequate experience with divorce mediation. Because mediation is confidential, the mediator may not be able to give you names of former clients. Mediator's processes vary significantly. Neither is right or wrong.