Seattlefamily law cases are governed by the rules of King County Superior Court.  Under those rules, parties must attempt tomediate before going to trial.  A family law mediation usually takes place at the office of a third-party, neutral attorney with whom the parties contract to help resolve the issues of theircase.  This attorney must be experiencedin the nuances of Seattle family law so that he or she may advise each side as to how a judge is likelyto rule if the case went to trial.  Theparties usually remain separate from each other during the mediation, and themediator travels back and forth between each party's station with offers andcounter-offers from each side.

Not all counties in Washington Staterequire mediation.  Nevertheless, it isgenerally a good idea to at least attempt mediation before incurring the stressand expense of trial.  Paying a Seattle family law lawyerto appear at trial can be very costly, and court trials are quitestressful.  Furthermore, when partiesseparate, there is usually already a lot of stress in the relationship.  The parties do not make good decisions aboutone another and sometimes hold onto animosity that keeps them from makingagreements.  Unfortunately, thisstalemate can lead to less than desirable consequences, and your lawyer willhave to charge you to argue for you in court.