Oregon Divorce Mediation with Matthew House, J.D.: Thoughtful and Thorough

Divorce is two things at once -- a human experience with concerns, goals, emotions, and questions; and a court-connected event with legal, financial, and technical details to address carefully. Matthew House understands the personal and practical aspects of divorce; he is both thoughtful and thorough. Matthew will encourage you to view each component of a divorce through that holistic lens.

After the introduction, the process can be done in any order. Some of the following components apply to all cases, whereas others may or may not apply to your case, depending on the circumstances. However many of the following components may be relevant to your case, it will probably make sense to consider them in this order, omitting any that do not apply to you:

• Introduction: Most likely, mediation can address your needs. It's still important to begin with an overview of the process.
• Income: Income is relevant in every case. It is the basis of determining spousal support and child support, but it also matters even when there are no minor children and the spouses agree that no spousal support should be exchanged.
• Budget: A detailed budget is a necessary component of any case involving child support and/or spousal support. A basic budget is necessary even if there are no minor children and it is agreed that no spousal support will be exchanged.
• Asset Division: Understanding the extent of your property, including the ownership status and the valuation, which may vary depending on the type of asset.
• Debts and Credit: Disclosure of all marital and separate debts to determine their equitable distribution
• Spousal Support: Determining the form, amount, and duration, if any, of spousal support to be exchanged
• Child Custody and Parenting Time: Drafting a regular parenting time schedule, exceptions to that schedule, a framework for collaborating as co-parents, and any other stipulations you wish to include.
• Child Support: Completing the child support worksheet and, if both parties agree, modifying it to suit your preferences and supplementing it to include expenses that cash child support is not meant to encompass on its own
• College Matters: Details of financial support for children who attend (or will attend) college or vocational training.
• Estate Planning: Reviewing your existing wills or trusts and determining what changes may be needed post-divorce
• Tax Issues: Considering tax-related aspects of mediation and your future filing statuses and dependency exemptions
• Insurance: Changing or adding to your insurance coverage, if advisable based on the decisions you make in mediation
• Specialty Areas: These include, but are certainly not limited to, subjects such as: LGBTQ+ divorce, military divorce, divorce when an adult or child has special needs, divorce involving older adults
• Marital Settlement Agreement: The document that Matthew will draft, which includes all of the decisions you have made in mediation
• Divorce Forms: Referral to a trusted paralegal to prepare your divorce Forms and file them with the court
• Post-Divorce Process: Understanding what to do after your divorce is final to execute decisions you made in mediation
• Resources: Professionals from Matthew's network who can assist you in various fields, if you wish

The specific components are outlined in each respective subsection of the Topics to Address section.