Metro Portland Divorce Mediator Matthew House:
Child of Divorce, Advocate for Kids and Teens
Dear new divorce mediation clients,
My experience as a child of divorce made me want to earn a law degree to help children, teens, and adults. I now integrate my background in teaching and divorce mediation and to help families and teens create positive change. I have now practiced as a metro Portland divorce mediator for 12 years and have settled hundreds of divorces.
When a couple is going through marriage problems or divorce, the whole family is suffering from those struggles. It is not an issue isolated to the husband and wife. Child-centered solutions will always work for adults, but adult-centered solutions will seldom work for children and teens. To that end, unless the clients insist otherwise (which almost never happens) I meet with my clients’ children (age 10-18) free of charge in their own session for up to two hours, without their parents present, so that their feedback can be offered and their questions can be answered in an informal, pressure-free environment. This aspect of my services is unique among Portland-area divorce mediators. No other divorce mediation professional offers this service free of charge, and most do not offer it at all.
If you have children, your most important obligations (and mine as your mediator) are: (1) to ensure that your parenting plan is solid and workable and (2) that your finances are as stable and equitable as they can be. Even if you do not have children, your own financial stability is essential. I will do everything possible to be both thorough and creative to find ways to make your goals transpire.
I have a law degree, and quite a few mediators do not. I cannot imagine being good (or even competent) at this work without a degree in law. It is not possible to learn enough law on one’s own to substitute for classroom instruction and thousands of hours of practice during three years as a law student.
My years as a law student at the University of Idaho College of Law, where I attended on a full tuition non-resident scholarship, taught me to think critically, evaluate all aspects of an issue, listen closely, and focus on details as well as the big picture. I specialized in Family Law, earned a place on the Dean’s List, and was recognized for the highest overall grade in seven separate courses. Prior to law school, I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Oregon, graduating in 2002 with a major in Spanish, magna cum laude with departmental honors.
Since 2005, my full-time divorce mediation practice has been exclusively family law cases. Specialization matters because it means that your divorce mediator spends all of his or her work time doing exactly the kind of case you have. Currently, approximately 90 percent of my cases involve couples who have minor children at the time of the divorce. Approximately 65 percent of my cases involve couples who have at least one teenage child. Over 12 years in practice as a divorce mediator, I have learned new information, tracked the changes in the law, tried new approaches, and accommodated my practice to the changing needs of my clients. If you are in a position to need my services, you will benefit from the history I have developed.
In my free time, I am an avid baseball fan, especially the Washington Nationals! The decor of the casual room at my office where
I meet kids and teens reflects that fact. My love for baseball even finds its way into my research, as I use baseball anecdotes past and present to explain contemporary issues of juvenile justice.
Please be assured that I will treat you and your family with compassion and competence. If you believe that divorce will be a catastrophic crisis, I hope I have a chance to change your mind with this efficient and amicable alternative. If you believe that you will your kids will suffer because of your divorce, I hope to demonstrate how to make their lives as smooth as possible so that there are no lingering effects of the transitions in the family. If you believe that your finances will not be stable and that things “will never be the same again” economically, I hope you will let me help you chart a path and show you ways to create a present plan that will provide you with immediate reassurance that even the time between now and “eventually” will also be stable.
I would be pleased to work with you and your family to bring about the same results that I have helped hundreds of other families to create through the unique advantages of divorce mediation.
Sincerely,
Matthew
My experience as a child of divorce made me want to earn a law degree to help children, teens, and adults. I now integrate my background in teaching and divorce mediation and to help families and teens create positive change. I have now practiced as a metro Portland divorce mediator for 12 years and have settled hundreds of divorces.
When a couple is going through marriage problems or divorce, the whole family is suffering from those struggles. It is not an issue isolated to the husband and wife. Child-centered solutions will always work for adults, but adult-centered solutions will seldom work for children and teens. To that end, unless the clients insist otherwise (which almost never happens) I meet with my clients’ children (age 10-18) free of charge in their own session for up to two hours, without their parents present, so that their feedback can be offered and their questions can be answered in an informal, pressure-free environment. This aspect of my services is unique among Portland-area divorce mediators. No other divorce mediation professional offers this service free of charge, and most do not offer it at all.
If you have children, your most important obligations (and mine as your mediator) are: (1) to ensure that your parenting plan is solid and workable and (2) that your finances are as stable and equitable as they can be. Even if you do not have children, your own financial stability is essential. I will do everything possible to be both thorough and creative to find ways to make your goals transpire.
I have a law degree, and quite a few mediators do not. I cannot imagine being good (or even competent) at this work without a degree in law. It is not possible to learn enough law on one’s own to substitute for classroom instruction and thousands of hours of practice during three years as a law student.
My years as a law student at the University of Idaho College of Law, where I attended on a full tuition non-resident scholarship, taught me to think critically, evaluate all aspects of an issue, listen closely, and focus on details as well as the big picture. I specialized in Family Law, earned a place on the Dean’s List, and was recognized for the highest overall grade in seven separate courses. Prior to law school, I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Oregon, graduating in 2002 with a major in Spanish, magna cum laude with departmental honors.
Since 2005, my full-time divorce mediation practice has been exclusively family law cases. Specialization matters because it means that your divorce mediator spends all of his or her work time doing exactly the kind of case you have. Currently, approximately 90 percent of my cases involve couples who have minor children at the time of the divorce. Approximately 65 percent of my cases involve couples who have at least one teenage child. Over 12 years in practice as a divorce mediator, I have learned new information, tracked the changes in the law, tried new approaches, and accommodated my practice to the changing needs of my clients. If you are in a position to need my services, you will benefit from the history I have developed.
In my free time, I am an avid baseball fan, especially the Washington Nationals! The decor of the casual room at my office where
I meet kids and teens reflects that fact. My love for baseball even finds its way into my research, as I use baseball anecdotes past and present to explain contemporary issues of juvenile justice.
Please be assured that I will treat you and your family with compassion and competence. If you believe that divorce will be a catastrophic crisis, I hope I have a chance to change your mind with this efficient and amicable alternative. If you believe that you will your kids will suffer because of your divorce, I hope to demonstrate how to make their lives as smooth as possible so that there are no lingering effects of the transitions in the family. If you believe that your finances will not be stable and that things “will never be the same again” economically, I hope you will let me help you chart a path and show you ways to create a present plan that will provide you with immediate reassurance that even the time between now and “eventually” will also be stable.
I would be pleased to work with you and your family to bring about the same results that I have helped hundreds of other families to create through the unique advantages of divorce mediation.
Sincerely,
Matthew