COVID-19 Separation Divorce Custody Mediation Information

Nancy Caplan, Esquire, Mediator, is offering for the first time, a 30 minute consultation at no charge for couples hoping to learn about how separation, divorce, alimony, child custody, child support and settlement agreements for division of assets and debts are handled in a teleconference mediation process. Please contact Nancy Caplan, Esq. by telephone, (410) 296-2190 or by email. Both parties must agree to participate in the consultation session.

If your spouse will not agree to a consultation at this time, please request an informational email about how separation, divorce, alimony, child custody, child support and settlement agreements for division of assets and debts are handled in a teleconference mediation process with Nancy Caplan, Esquire, Mediator. Please contact Nancy Caplan, Esq. by telephone, (410) 296-2190 or by email. You may share the informational email with your spouse at your leisure. It allows the information to be “the messenger” of a peaceful solution. A separation, divorce or custody or child support process that requires no retainers, is voluntary, and is available while you are in the comfort of your home during regular business hours, or in the evenings, or on weekends, reduces the barriers to settlement of your family law matter.

The circumstances of COVID-19 and its’ impact on our community are particularly difficult for those also experiencing the life trauma of separation and divorce, and for those with custody or child support co-parenting disputes. Many spouses are continuing to cohabitate in an extraordinary problem of desiring separation and/or divorce settlements while experiencing the fear we all are experiencing with the health threat of COVID- 19. This traumatic stressor of needing to separate during this time probably feels unbearable.

The courts of Maryland and around the country are trying to operate under limitations never encountered by the public. You may have a difficult time moving a court-filed cases through the judicial system on the judicial timetable that may require so many families to wait to seek the much-needed resolutions for these family law matters. You need an alternative dispute resolution process to address issues of child support, alimony, child custody and division of assets and debts that need settlement to move on after the pandemic has passes.

Mediation may be your answer to addressing pressing matters right now. There is no need to wait until matters inside the home deteriorate; and there is no need to wait until matters outside of our homes (i.e. the pandemic) are resolved. You may never have as much time to devote to the details required by attending to division of assets, custody of children and child support, issues of alimony and resolution of your separation and divorce issues in Maryland.

Yes, the COVID-19 corona virus may change the type of settlement for each asset. The circumstances change and so do the ways to resolve the division of assets, alimony and child support. These financial crisis situations happened during the housing crisis crash of 2008, and very often the parties beneficially share in the resolutions you will formulate to deal with the new circumstances. A crisis probably means the need to reach agreements to avoid additional disputes is more pressing than ever. Do not live with uncertainty that you can resolve.

Nancy Caplan, Esquire, is an attorney and mediator who can assist you to find to negotiate and settle the terms of your separation, divorce, alimony, child custody, child support and division of assets and debts during the COVID-19, corona virus pandemic.

Ms. Caplan is offering free 30 minute teleconference Zoom consultations. Please contact Nancy Caplan, Esq. by telephone, (410) 296-2190 or by email. Both parties must agree to participate in the consultation session. You will be able to meet the mediator and learn about how the process of divorce mediation with Nancy Caplan, Esquire at Maryland Divorce Mediation & Legal Services is all about. Whether you are in Baltimore County (where Ms. Caplan’s office is located) or in Harford County, Montgomery County, Baltimore City, Frederick County any other county in Maryland distance is not a barrier with teleconference mediation. Mediation in Maryland is not county-specific. Teleconference mediation has broken the distance barriers. You only need a computer and an internet connection. If the parties are residing together, they will only need one computer. No retainer is required. Payment is made at the end of each session, by credit or debt card (checks can be arranged as well) and arrangements shall be made in advance. Ms. Caplan has regular business hours, evening and weekend appointment hours.

If you have a matter already filed in the court system and if you are represented by counsel, I suggest you request mediation through your attorneys. Ask your attorneys to request private mediation with Ms. Caplan. In this case Ms. Caplan will honor the court’s mediation hourly rate as a courtesy to the judicial system. It will be up to you and your spouse whether to attend mediation alone or with counsel present (i.e. all through Zoom video-conferencing), however if one party brings an attorney then it is suggested that both parties have attorneys’ present so that a balance of fairness is maintained. Many people who are already represented by attorneys in court attend mediation without their attorneys present. Having attorneys present is most often necessary in cases having greater financial complexity. Nothing in a mediation is binding until after agreements are part of a written, signed, dated and notarized settlement agreement. Mediation is a controlled settlement negotiation. Nancy Caplan, Esquire attorney and mediator will draft the settlement agreement upon the parties’ joint request (often referenced as the Marital Settlement Agreement or conversationally as a Separation Agreement) for each party’s independent attorney review. Independent attorney review of any draft Maryland Settlement Agreement is a requirement of Ms. Caplan’s drafting. Even with independent attorney review to allow both parties’ to receive legal advice prior to signing, the mediation process is often a fraction of the cost of attorney-led negotiations and/or highly expensive litigation.

What happens if you cannot convince your spouse or co-parent to attend a free 30 minute teleconference Zoom consultations? First, have patience. Many people are experiencing anxiety at this time. Second, please request my informational email so that you do not have to wait to obtain information about costs, how long a mediation might take, and how to prepare for divorce mediation, separation mediation or custody or child support mediation in Maryland. Please contact Nancy Caplan, Esq. by telephone, (410) 296-2190 or by email. This comprehensive guide can be forwarded to your spouse so that he/she can review it in private at his/her convenience. Hopefully this will convey a message that mediation in Maryland for separation, divorce and custody is the cost-effective and non-aggressive resolution you are seeking. Hopefully this can set the tone of cooperation and start the plan for reconstruction of the lives of both parties. Requesting that your spouse consider mediation for separation and divorce is in and of itself, an offering to handle a traumatic matter in a private, less stressful, far less costly manner. Your request for mediation at a time where emotions are escalating and finances are stressed might be a good way to communicate your desire to reduce tensions caused by the unknown future. If your spouse feels you are seeking to reduce emotional tensions and/or utilize a reasonably priced alternative dispute resolution process, he/she may feel ready to handle this difficult separation and divorce process.

Information about separation, divorce, alimony and custody or child support mediation is a phone call or an email away. Please contact Nancy Caplan, Esq. by telephone, (410) 296-2190 or by email. There is no obligation if you seek a consultation; there is no obligation if you seek an informational email about separation, divorce and custody mediation in Maryland. Ms. Caplan will not put you on any mailing list or otherwise contact you or your spouse or coparent except upon your request. Beginning to understand your options will go a long way to feeling more in control of this overwhelming situation which has been made more overwhelming by the COVID-19 Corona Virus crisis. Will a step forward to help you to regain control of your futures and reduce the emotional trauma you are experiencing?

Families are literally stuck during this COVID-19 Corona virus crisis; however, with careful planning and the economical separation, divorce, alimony, child support and custody alternative dispute resolution process of mediation, your family law matters might be resolved when we are all ready to re-emerge from isolation and rejoin our new normal.

Don’t wait for information. You may never be more able to turn your attention to the details required to resolve your separation, divorce, alimony, custody, division of assets family law matters, and Nancy Caplan, Esquire, mediator for 14 years, is here to help.