Although mediation is a voluntary process and therefore you can refuse to attend, it is important to think carefully about what the alternative is and what the consequences could be if you refused. Separation can be hard on everyone, particularly children caught in the middle of what can develop into bitter and drawn-out court proceedings. Mediation can offer the opportunity to put an end to the spiral of conflict and find tailored solutions that meet the needs of the whole family enabling you to get on with your lives. Quite often litigation will leave one, if not both, parties dissatisfied with the outcome. In some cases, they will unhappily limp along with the arrangement until one of them applies back to the court or the dissatisfaction will lead to contempt and the prospect of enforcement proceedings perpetuating the cycle of litigation and acrimony. Conversely, arrangements reached through mediation with the input and support of both are more likely to endure. Mediation also offers the opportunity to ‘road test’ solutions and to review and refine over time as necessary. A mediated settlement can achieve significant savings in costs when compared to an acrimonious solicitor/court-based route.