Benefits of Mediation
Family Law Conejo

Why Mediate?

• Maintain your privacy. Keep your case out of court and the public record.
• Generally, mediation with a Conejo Valley family mediator is less expensive than contested court divorces.
• You and the other party, and not the court, will control the terms of your divorce.
• Mediation is faster than waiting for a crowded court docket.
• Mediation is flexible and open to team members, such as a child specialist to troubleshoot sticky custody issues.
• You will get the peace of mind that you don’t have to wait in crowded family court hallways while the clock is ticking and your professional fees are significant.
• Mediation is mentally less frustrating than adversarial systems.
• We at Zonder Family Law offer you options, guidance, and a “voice of reason” during divorce, which for many is an emotional time in their lives.
• We are conveniently located in your Westlake neighborhood and easily accessible to Thousand Oaks, Calabasas, West Hills, Newbury Park and Camarillo.

How Much Does Mediation Cost?

• We charge on an hourly basis for mediation services. Overall fees tend to be cheaper than litigation. (Note: Every case differs so no mediator can guarantee this).
• It is possible to reach agreements on all issues in a divorce in just one mediation session that consists of a few hours. However, this is not so in every case. Since cases vary in the number of issues and their complexity, we find that every mediation is somewhat different. Many do settle in two or four mediation sessions, however even those participating in more lengthy mediations maintain a fair amount of control over their process.
• Visit Zonder Family Law’s mediation rates page for more details.

How Do We Get Started?

• Meet with Lisa R. Zonder, experienced Conejo Valley family mediator and our lead mediation attorney. She will educate you generally about the mediation process.
• Review the written mediation retainer and its terms.
• Discuss how your particular mediation will be conducted. Set the length of your mediation sessions.
• Review the financial disclosures of each party, and begin to frame the issues to be discussed.
• Reach tentative agreements on those issues that can be resolved. Put agreements in writing, pending further discussions at future follow-up mediation sessions.
• Negotiate other resolutions at follow-up sessions.
• The Conejo Valley family mediator will write up the agreements reached by the parties.
• Parties review and sign the agreement.
• This process makes it possible for the parties to avoid court appearances.

What If Our Case Is Complicated?

• We can enlist CPAs, CFPs, therapists, business valuation, or retirement sub-specialists, as needed, to be part of your divorce team. Click on the link to review our list of independent mediators who are experts in other fields.
• We have a list of professionals we work with who will be available to you in “real time,” as needed, for as little as 1 hour or less. This way, you won’t have to pay costly retainers for these experts, who ordinarily have retainers requiring thousands of dollars. They will be available to answer your specific questions.
• The team of experts may prepare a listing of all assets by category, instead of lumping all the assets together, in order to point out liquid funds and tax implications.
• Conejo Valley family mediator and lead mediation counsel Lisa R. Zonder has handled many complex divorce cases and has been practicing for approximately 20 years.

What Alternatives Are There To Mediation If My Spouse Won't Agree?

• Options include collaborative divorce or a traditional court divorce.
• Another option is to have your lawyer negotiate with the opposing counsel in a “lawyer-to-lawyer” negotiated settlement.

Why Choose Lisa Zonder?

Lisa Zonder has been a practicing attorney for nearly 20 years.  She remains dedicated to serving family law clients by educating them as to the numerous options available to resolve their cases in a way that makes the most sense for their families. She is consumer friendly. She offers guidance, support, sensitivity and experience. Ms. Zonder has both Basic and Advanced Mediation training. In addition, she has completed Collaborative Divorce training.  She volunteers for the Superior Court in order to give back to the community by serving as a settlement attorney for contested divorce matters.

Call us at our Westlake office. Telephone (805) 231-5705 or our San Diego office (760) 438-3383 or toll free at (866) 632-6459 to schedule a consultation with an experienced Conejo Valley family mediator. Consultation is granted based on appropriate qualification, as determined by Lisa Zonder. We also have access to mediation offices in Calabasas so please ask us if you need a more convenient office location.