How to make your Divorce cheaper, the Irish way.

By late 2008 the Irish economy was showing dramatic signs of overheating. Ireland had enjoyed almost a decade of unprecedented growth. A building boom had placed the Irish economy into a position of unprecedented wealth. Suddenly, the country went from a position of relative wealth to extreme wealth. Large scale hotels and shopping developments were springing up on every street corner.

By contrast divorce was a relatively new phenomenon in Irish society. The catholic church had long held Irish society in it's grip. In the early nineties Irish society was gripped by a series of scandals relating to the catholic church. The influence of the catholic church began to decrease and public opinion on the ban on divorce changed. In the late 1980's the first Divorce refferendum was struck down. By the mid nineties the public attitude had changed somewhat and a second divorce refferendum was narrowly passed. In 1996 the Family Law (Divorce) Act was passed. With the advent of the Divorce Act and ten years of case law, Irish divorce law has come full circle.

With the excess of the boom and the doldrums of the financial collapse, Irish divorce law is having to adapt to the needs of society. Whereas last year people were cash rich, this year people are finding it hard to pay their legal bills.

Private mediation never really took off in Ireland to any large extent. The public Family Mediation Service developed a backlog in recent times with the collapse of the financial system. More and more private family law mediatiors are now opening shop. People can no longer afford substantial legal fees and protracted family litigation court proceedings. Mediation is filling the gap in the system. More and more people are turning to mediation.

Depending on the system used family mediations take four to five sessions to complete on average. The average mediation session lasts up to an hour and a half. The parties to the dispute attempt to conclude a memorandum of understanding. This is not a legally binding agreement but merely a reflection of the understanding reached by both sides to a dispute.

Prior to engaging in the mediation process the parties sign a financial summary which is an open document that can be used in evidence in future court cases if the mediation breaks down. This means that the process is completed by both sides on an open and transparent basis. For further information on mediation visit our site at familymediation.ie.