FDR allows you to negotiate informally on a level playing field and in a safe environment. You decide on the topics to be discussed. Through the facilitation of an independent FDRP, you are empowered to come up with a parenting plan or agreement, which is not imposed on you like a court order. You decide the where, when, who and how of your FDR. You don’t have to wait for court processes to be complete to move forward. You don’t have to wait for a hearing date. You don’t have to wait for a judge to decide. You decide everything, and most importantly you decide the outcome about your children that is acceptable to you.

Since FDR resolves parenting arrangements faster than Court, it is also more affordable.  The FDRP moves everyone forward through the FDR process as fast as the slowest parent to keep up. FDR spares you the need to pay for years of legal fees for court proceedings and trial, since you will only need to pay for the services of the FDRP.  It is relatively inexpensive compared with the cost of litigation.

FDR is the chance to be heard and listened to, and a safe dispute resolution pathway, focused on achieving resolutions for the whole family. By letting you take the front seat in the discussion and encouraging you to generate options and consider alternatives, FDR promotes working together to achieve outcomes in the best interest of the children and whole family. In cases where total settlement may not be achieved, FDR helps narrow the parenting issues in dispute.  At FDR these limited issues can be referred to arbitration by agreement.

Our registered FDRPs who are also nationally accredited mediators are insightful when it comes to resolving parenting problems. They are family lawyers and ask the difficult questions, identify the real issues and clarify all concerns prior to the discussion of possible solutions.  SHAW FDR Practitioners want to address with you, your barriers to an agreement about your children, what the risks are for you and your children.

At SHAW FDR, your communication with the mediator and during mediation is not revealed to anyone else in the FDR process without your knowledge, unless it is necessary for the purpose of complying with the law.  Privacy can be a very important term of the whole ordeal.  SHAW FDR Practitioners can come to you to meet in your preferred setting if this makes you more comfortable. The outcome you decide is also private. It is not published or accessible to others. Private outcomes encourage open and frank discussion and allow parents and children to keep their private lives private.

FDR is the best alternative to agree on parenting matters and to preserve relationships for the benefit of the children. The FDRP levels the playing field and protects you from hostility and aggression, while promoting collaboration, respect and kindness to achieve clear resolution about parenting arrangements, allowing parents to end relationships on the best terms possible.

You are the one who knows your children best and what you want for them.  At FDR you are the one who decides what you will accept for your children and their future. Unlike a judge making orders, you have the opportunity to craft terms of your parenting plan or agreement that uniquely suits your family’s needs. If you do that, then chances are, everyone will stick by the agreement until you decide it needs to be changed.