Mediation Preparation

This week, a Tennessee client was explaining her proposed divorce settlement me. She was quite nervous about her Nashville mediation in a few days. She had not yet met with her divorce attorney to prepare. I encouraged her to get her financial paperwork organized. I also encouraged her to really think about what assets she wanted and why she wanted her proposed divorce settlement. Was it a fair division of assets/debts? As we discussed these topics it was obvious that she had not clearly thought through these issues. She told me that she assumed that her attorney would know what to ask for. I assured her that she needed to have these answers so her attorney could do their job. She needed to be proactive. I told her that "Your attorney can't protect you if he does not know what he needs to protect. He can't be your advocate if he does not know what he needs to ask for". I encourage my divorce clients to consider what they want from their divorce settlement, why they want it as well as the long-term impacts of their choices. What seems like a fair deal today, may not be in 10 or 15 years. You've got to think about tomorrow and you've got one chance to get it right.