You’re looking at six months to resolution instead of nineteen. That’s not marketing talk—that’s the difference between mediation and litigation in Orange County right now.
Your costs stay between $2,000 and $5,000 total with our flat fee pricing. Compare that to the $15,000 to $30,000 you’d spend fighting it out in court, and the math makes sense fast.
But here’s what matters more than speed or money: you stay in control. You and your spouse decide what’s fair for property division, spousal support, and custody arrangements. A judge who’s never met your kids doesn’t make those calls. You do.
The agreements you reach are legally binding. They get filed with the court just like any other divorce decree. The difference is you shaped the terms instead of having them handed down to you.
And if you have children, mediation teaches you how to work through disagreement without destroying each other. That skill doesn’t end when the divorce does—you’ll need it for years of co-parenting ahead.
We work exclusively in family law mediation across Orange County. We’re not generalists who dabble in divorce between business disputes.
Our mediators are trained specifically in California family law. That matters because your property division and support calculations have to follow state guidelines, or they won’t hold up. We know those rules inside out.
Trabuco Canyon couples come to us because we’re local, we understand the cost of living here, and we’ve seen what works in Orange County courts. We’ve helped families navigate everything from straightforward dissolutions to complex property division and post-judgment modifications.
You’re not getting a corporate mediation mill. You’re getting professionals who chose this work because we’re good at helping people find fair solutions during hard transitions.
First, we meet with both of you together. This isn’t therapy—it’s a structured conversation about the practical issues you need to resolve: assets, debts, support, custody, and parenting time.
We don’t take sides. Our job is to make sure both of you understand California’s divorce laws, know what a court would likely do, and then help you craft an agreement that works better than that baseline.
You’ll typically need three to five sessions depending on complexity. We schedule around your availability—evenings, weekends, whatever works. No waiting months for a court date.
Between sessions, you might gather financial documents, think through parenting schedules, or get appraisals on property. We’ll tell you exactly what’s needed. No surprises.
Once you reach agreement on all issues, we draft your settlement. That document gets filed with the court as part of your divorce petition. The court reviews it, and if everything’s in order, you get your final dissolution.
The whole process typically wraps in six months. You spend a fraction of what litigation costs, and you walk away with an agreement you actually helped create.
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Property division covers everything you own together—the house, retirement accounts, vehicles, bank accounts, even debt. California is a community property state, which means assets acquired during marriage get split 50/50 unless you both agree otherwise. We help you figure out what’s fair given your specific situation.
Spousal support depends on length of marriage, income disparity, and each person’s ability to be self-supporting. There are calculators and guidelines, but there’s also room for negotiation. We walk through the numbers with you so you understand what you’re agreeing to.
Child custody and parenting time are usually the most emotional parts. We focus on what actually works for your kids’ schedules and your work commitments. You know your family better than a judge does—mediation lets you use that knowledge.
Child support follows state guidelines based on income and timeshare percentages. We run the calculations so you see exactly what the numbers look like under different custody arrangements.
Post-judgment modifications are available if circumstances change after your divorce. Job loss, relocation, kids getting older—life happens. We can help you modify support or custody orders without going back to court.
We charge a flat fee that typically ranges from $2,000 to $5,000 total depending on your case complexity. That covers all mediation sessions, document preparation, and filing your settlement with the court.
Compare that to litigation where you’re paying two attorneys by the hour. Most contested divorces in Orange County run $15,000 to $30,000 per person. You’re looking at $30,000 to $60,000 combined.
Our flat fee pricing means no surprise bills, no hourly rate anxiety, and no incentive for us to drag things out. You know your costs upfront.
Disagreement is normal—that’s why you’re getting divorced. Mediation doesn’t require you to agree on everything before you start. It gives you a structured process to work through disagreements.
We help you understand what California law says about the issues you’re stuck on. Sometimes just knowing what a judge would likely order helps you find middle ground.
If you truly can’t reach agreement on certain issues after good-faith effort, you can still take those specific items to court while settling everything else through mediation. That’s still faster and cheaper than litigating your entire divorce.
Mediation isn’t right for everyone. If there’s a history of domestic violence, financial hiding, or one person is completely unwilling to negotiate, court might be your only option. We’ll be honest with you about whether mediation makes sense for your situation.
Most couples complete mediation in six months or less. That includes your mediation sessions, document preparation, filing with the court, and waiting for the mandatory six-month California cooling-off period.
Contested litigation typically takes 12 to 19 months in Orange County. Court calendars are backlogged, discovery takes time, and you’re working around court schedules instead of your own.
The actual mediation sessions usually span three to five meetings of two to three hours each. We schedule those at your convenience—not when a judge happens to be available.
The six-month minimum is California law. Even if you agree on everything immediately, the state requires six months between filing and final dissolution. Mediation just means you’re not spending that time fighting.
Yes. Once we draft your settlement agreement and you both sign it, that document gets filed with the court as part of your divorce petition. The court reviews it to make sure it’s fair and follows California law.
When the judge signs off, your mediated agreement becomes a court order with the same legal weight as any litigated divorce decree. It’s completely enforceable.
If either person violates the terms later—doesn’t pay support, doesn’t follow custody schedules, whatever—the other person can go to court for enforcement just like with any court order.
The difference is you created these terms instead of having them imposed on you. That usually means both people are more likely to follow them because they feel fair.
Yes, but you’ll likely need outside experts. We can mediate the division of complex assets like businesses, stock options, or multiple properties. What we can’t do is value them for you.
You might need a business appraiser, a forensic accountant, or a real estate expert. Those professionals give you the numbers, and we help you negotiate who gets what based on those valuations.
This is still dramatically cheaper than litigation. In court, both sides hire their own experts, and you end up paying for duplicate work. In mediation, you typically share one expert and split the cost.
Complex doesn’t mean impossible. It just means we need good information to work with, and you need to be willing to be transparent about finances.
In mediation, you work with one neutral mediator who doesn’t represent either person. We facilitate negotiation, but we don’t give legal advice to either side. You can consult your own attorneys outside of sessions if you want.
In collaborative divorce, each person hires their own collaborative attorney who participates in joint meetings. You’re paying for two attorneys throughout the process, which costs more than mediation.
Both approaches avoid court. Both aim for cooperative resolution. Mediation is typically faster and less expensive because you’re paying one professional instead of two.
Some people prefer collaborative divorce if they want their own attorney in the room during negotiations. Others prefer mediation’s simplicity and lower cost. It depends on your comfort level and complexity.
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