Families and Mediation : The Impact of Various Mediation Styles in Child Custody Cases

Arsić, Jelena (2016) Families and Mediation : The Impact of Various Mediation Styles in Child Custody Cases. Facta Universitatis. Series, Law and Politics, 14 (4). pp. 515-529. ISSN 1450-5517

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Abstract

The child custody disputes may have different backgrounds, such as: divorce, guardianship, adoption, child abuse and neglect, etc. Quite often, however, parents’ separation and divorce raise the issue of child custody. Families dealing with these stressful life events face a tough time of insecurity and confusion. Studies have shown that the degree of cooperation or conflict between parents is the factor that significantly contributes to how the children will react to their parents’ divorce or separation. Unfortunately, the adversarial process has not proven to be the best method to help parents to cooperate and support each other when the lives of their children are being discussed. In contrast to litigation, mediation has showed to be a process that diminishes negative consequences that often result from custody disputes. Mediation brings parents together, emphasizes their common interests, and helps them make decisions that will benefit the whole family. During the past few decades, international mediation practice has developed various mediation styles, nowadays used by mediators to manage different types of disputes. This paper will address one of the most discussed classifications of mediation styles with an effort to reach conclusions on the most appropriate approach to mediating child custody disputes.

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