McKinney Child Support and Visitation Mediators in Texas

Family Law Mediation Services for Parents in Collin County, TX and Surrounding Areas

If you are getting a divorce from your child's other parent, or if you have a child without being married, you will need to address a number of legal matters related to your child's well-being. Some of the most important include establishing a child support order and determining each parent's visitation rights. These issues can often be contentious, but mediation can help you resolve them more efficiently and with much less stress, allowing you to focus on your child's needs.

At Divorce Mediation Centers of America, we provide family law mediation services as an alternative to contested litigation. Our mediators act as neutral third parties to facilitate negotiations between parents that often lead to mutually agreed resolutions. We understand that parents often best understand their children's needs, and we leave the important decisions in your hands.

Texas Child Support Mediation

Mediation can help parents resolve a variety of disputes involving child support, starting with an agreement on the initial child support order. Texas courts will want to ensure that the child support order provides for the child's basic needs according to state guidelines, but you may have some leeway in determining how to address expenses beyond the basic needs, like child care, extracurricular activities, or extraordinary medical needs. Child support obligations are also influenced by custody arrangements, and mediation can help you better understand the interplay between these issues and reach a resolution with their relationship in mind.

Mediation can also help you resolve disputes after your child support order has been established, including those related to late or missing payments. Taking a child support enforcement matter to court can be expensive, and it may result in serious legal and financial consequences for the paying parent. Through mediation, however, you may be able to agree on a plan for resolving outstanding obligations between the two of you without involving the court. You may also be able to agree on modifications to an existing support order that make payments more manageable while still providing for your child's needs.

Mediation for Visitation Disputes

Visitation schedules can also cause conflict between parents both during and after the divorce process. You may find that you disagree on details ranging from overnight stays with each parent, to holiday plans, to the details of transportation and exchanges between homes. Rather than leaving these decisions up to the court to impose a solution, mediation allows you and the other parent to work through your differences and reach a more creative, flexible resolution that accounts for your family's unique needs and preferences.

As with child support, visitation disputes often arise as time goes on, perhaps because your circumstances have changed or a parent is not following the terms of the agreement. Through mediation, you and the other parent may develop a better understanding of each other's needs and concerns, allowing you to take steps toward a resolution or modifications that make the agreement work better for both of you, as well as your children.

Sometimes, visitation disputes involve grandparents and other relatives who want to spend time with the children. It can be very difficult for these relatives to secure visitation rights through litigation, especially if the parents are opposed. Mediation is often a better option for resolving disagreements out of court, allowing you and the other parties to determine for yourselves how to handle visitation between the children and their extended family.

Contact a Collin County Child Support Mediator

Resolving a child-related dispute does not have to mean fighting a contested battle and giving up control to the court. Contact us today at 469-406-4320 to schedule a free consultation and determine whether mediation is a good option for you. We serve clients in Denton County, Dallas County, Collin County, Plano, Frisco, McKinney, Allen, Carrollton, Dallas, Celina, Flower Mound, Little Elm, Prosper, and the surrounding areas.