Frequently Asked Questions


Why mediate?

Here at Olive, we believe that mediation is the obvious choice over litigation to resolve your conflict. The 6 main benefits of mediation are that the process is:

1. Empowering

The biggest benefit of mediation is that it gives you the opportunity to create an outcome that you have had a say in and have agreed to. This is not always the case with litigation where the court decides for you, in a way that can at times feel very much at odds with a ‘fair outcome’.

2. Efficient

Mediation can be arranged and undertaken in a few weeks whereas litigation can often have you in the court system for 1 to 2 years. This is particularly true of the Family Court system and the stakes can feel high waiting this time out when parenting arrangements are not working well for your children.

3. Cost- Effective

Mediation is a cost effective, solutions-based option and is extremely affordable in comparison to the cost of litigation, which is known to be between $30,000 - $100,000 for the Family Court and higher courts such as the Supreme Court. Mediation on the other hand is fixed fee. Meaning you know the cost from the outset and are not faced with the uncertainty and stress of not knowing what the cost of your legal bill might be at the end of each month.

4. Non-judgemental

The mediator’s role is to create a neutral environment and to act impartially when mediating between parties There is no judgement in this setting and the process is flexible and informal to assist parties in being able to make their own decisions in relation to their conflict.

5. Confidential

Mediation is confidential - which means that you can speak freely and share your thoughts, experiences and perspectives and nothing said, or agreed, can be shared with other people once you finish the mediation session. Nor can what you say, or agreed, be used against you in court proceedings, if the matter later ends up in court. There are some limited exceptions to this in relation to the mediator’s mandatory reporter obligations (relating to safety risk to a person) which are explained from the outset by your mediator.

6. Safe

We say that mediation is safe for all parties, it is our role as your mediators to ensure that the matter is suitable for mediation and ensure that any mediation that takes place is undertaken with respect and without abuse from anyone who attends.

OTHER FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

  • As Accredited Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners, Mel and Kristal both have the authority to issue a section 60I certificate pursuant to the Family Law Act 1975.

    An intake is required to be undertaken before consideration can be given to the suitability to issue a section 60I certificate.

  • Yes, Mediation and Family Dispute Resolution is completely confidential and done in a ‘without prejudice” setting. What this means is that what is said in mediation cannot be used in court or other proceedings. There are some very important exceptions to confidentiality that a mediator and Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (FDRP) must comply with and that is if they consider that one of the parties or children to the proceedings is at risk of harm.

  • The mediator’s role is to facilitate the conversation between both parties and creates an open forum to establish meaningful conversations. A mediator does:

    • Help identify the issues in dispute between the parties;

    • Create discussion between the parties and encourages each party to share their perspectives and experiences in relation to the issues;

    • Brainstorms solutions and reality-checks these solutions to ensure they are ‘real-life workable’ if agreement is reached.

  • The Mediator does not:

    • Force anyone to participate in mediation (or force anyone to reach agreement at mediation) as its an entirely voluntary process;

    • Take sides or make decisions for the parties;

    • Share anything that is said at mediation with anyone else (unless required to do so by law as a mandatory reporter, where there is a risk of harm to people. property or pets);

    • Share with the other party anything you tell the mediator during your intake or your private session with the mediator;

    • Allow a party to be abusive or agressive to you during the mediation.

  • Parties often reach full or partial agreement at mediation. To ensure that any agreement is binding, it is important to involve a lawyer to formalise the agreement.

    In relation to parenting or family law property matters, parties should afterwards engage a lawyer to formalise the agreement by way of a Parenting Plan, Consent Orders and/or a Binding Financial Agreement.

  • If agreement is not reached, parties have a number of options available to them:

    • Attend a further mediation session (this can be useful particularly once parties have gone home and had time to think through what they have heard at the initial mediation),

    • Engage a lawyer to try to resolve matters with legal assistance; or

    • Commence court proceedings and seek that a section 60I certificate can be issued.

  • Yes at Olive Mediation, we are members of the Resolution Institute and are subject to their Code of Ethics, which can be found here.

  • As we are members of the Resolution Institute, you have the right to make a complaint about our services.

    You can do this by contacting the Resolution Institute as follows:

    Email infoaus@resolution.institute Phone 02 9251 3366 or 1800 651 650 Website www.resolution.institute

  • We accept both credit card payments through our provider stripe and deposit by way of direct deposit.

  • At Olive Mediation we offer fixed fees. All current prices can be found on our booking page. Simply click the Book Now button on our website to view our current prices.

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