The Family Mediation Blog
Court 1A Backlog Update
Monday, March 8, 2021
Court 1A Backlog Update- 1,050 1A hearings for uncontested divorces were scheduled, some as late as August 2021,
- 3,000 1A cases were processed by the court and waiting to be scheduled for hearings, and
- Potentially, thousands more were received by the court and had yet to be processed by the court.
Multi-Organization Workshop Series on Bias and Diversity in the Dispute Resolution Community
Wednesday, February 3, 2021The Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation (MCFM) joined forces and resources with the Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council (MCLC) and the Academy of Professional Family Mediators (APFM) to hire Dr. David Campt of The Dialogue Company and Matthew Freeman, co-author with Tiffany Jana of “Overcoming Bias”, to assist our organizations with education on unconscious bias and how it impacts the diversity and equity in our dispute resolution community. Dr. Camp and Mr. Freeman, working with our organizations' leaders designed a 4-part series aimed at improving our organizations' understanding of these issues and drafting an action plan for creating greater diversity, equity and inclusion both in our organizations and in the larger dispute resolution community.
To that end, and in the interest of having the largest possible impact of...
In Memory of Jerry Weinstein
Sunday, January 17, 2021
It is with tremendous sadness that we share the passing of Jerry Weinstein. In addition to being the first divorce mediator in New England, Jerry was a founding member of MCFM, our first president, the 2006 recipient of the John Fiske Award for Excellence in Mediation, and an MCFM Director Emeritus.
A tribute to Jerry by John Fiske:
Jerry Weinstein was the father or grandfather of family mediation in Massachusetts, and the Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation was his brainchild and home. I joined the mediation family in September of 1979 after taking a year long absence from Massachusetts with my wife and 3 children with no idea what I would do upon returning. During our trek in Nepal in February my wife suggested I try to help people get divorced peacefully and when I met with Weston friends in Crete in April they...
Child Support Guidelines Task Force Comments
Wednesday, December 16, 2020
The 2020-2021 Massachusetts Trial Court Child Support Guidelines Task Force requested the submission of comments by December 15, 2020 to assist them in updating the guidelines as required every four years. After multiple meetings and requests for submissons from MCFM members an ad hoc committee put together comments to be submitted from MCFM. These are the comments we submitted:
To the Task Force:
The Massachusetts...
In Memory of Rebecca Cohan
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
Rebecca M. Cohan, long-time MCFM member, passed away on December 6, 2020. As a therapist she worked with individual clients, couples and families for over 40 years, and in 2002 she began working as a family mediator as well. Rebecca continued to help families through her Co-Mediation practice with attorney Stephen Linsky and in her work as a GAL and Parent Coordinator. Our thoughts are with her family, friends, and colleagues. In Memory of Barry Harsip
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
Barry S. Harsip, long-time MCFM member, passed away on December 3, 2020 after a long battle with a terminal neurological disease. Our community mourns the loss of an ardent supporter of mediation and peaceful dispute resolution. Our thoughts are with his family, friends, and colleagues. Hiring a Mediator for Your Coronavirus Divorce
Tuesday, November 3, 2020Hiring a Mediator for Your Coronavirus Divorce
Right now, more than ever, mediation can assist with family restructuring. The courts are backed up and families are under tremendous stress under one roof. The good news is that the entire process of a divorce or separation can now be done online (Zoom); and a mediator can help. A mediator can also be the best way to avoid the stress, damage and cost of a court battle. Their Legacy Moves us Forward
Wednesday, September 23, 2020Their Legacy Moves us Forward
The legal community lost two brilliant minds last week with the passing of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Ralph D. Gants, and the passing of Supreme Court of the United States Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In very different ways, both of these great leaders influenced my career path. They each helped to define for me the way in which I wanted to use my advocacy skills to promote more access to justice and a justice system that promotes greater equality in outcome. While my story may be unique, these two zealous advocates had a memorable impact on the career of many of my fellow mediators too.
When applying to law school, I wrote of my desire to affect...
Remembering Chief Justice Ralph D. Gants with John Fiske
Tuesday, September 22, 2020"I knew him well, first through soccer and then through my history of working four years for the SJC on trying to improve court administration 1974 to 1978, and also through his relationship with Massachusetts Justice of the Federal District Court Dennis Saylor, my son in law. Chief Justice Gants was a big supporter of mediation and its role in helping the courts in Massachusetts serve justice for all. He helped to put in place the two amazing Chief Justices that we interact with more often in the area of family law and mediation: Chief Justice of the Trial Court Paula Carey and Chief Justice of the Probate and Family Court John Casey. They too are both strong supporters of mediation and will surely carry on his great legacy. We are indebted to him as a community for the work that he has done...
Bearing Witness in Mediation
Friday, September 11, 2020
Bearing Witness in Mediation
Published in mediate.com, August, 2020
Recently I’ve been pondering a certain aspect of my experience with mediating divorces. It’s about something that often comes up in my encounters with my mediation clients.
The feature of all mediations that I will talk about in this post is something I call “bearing witness.” When clients bear witness in mediation, and when you, as the mediator bear witness for the clients, it can be quite powerful in resolving a divorce. But it needs to be handled properly, or it can be dangerous and get out of control. If that...
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