Mediation provides families with an alternative way of resolving disputes without the expense and conflict of litigation. Matthew Jolly is an experienced mediator who can help families find reasonable solutions to complex problems.
Matthew Jolly has experience acting as an arbitrator for disputes for a wide variety of issues including resolving child-related decisions, child support, spousal maintenance, and complex property division.
Mediation can be a great option for couples to resolve family disputes without the expense or conflict that can result from litigating those issues in court. As a mediator, Matthew Jolly works with both parties to find solutions that everyone can accept and that are tailored to each family’s individual needs and circumstances.
Mediated agreements offer significant advantages over court ordered resolutions. Mediation allows separating and divorcing couples to take control of planning their own lives and make their own decisions about their future. It is an especially valuable tool for parents who want to find a way to work together on behalf of their children and not spend their time and money locked in conflict with each other.
Parties who reach resolutions through mediation generally report that they are more satisfied with the outcome than those who litigate. Mediated settlements also have a consistently higher compliance rate because the parents have created their own agreement and voluntarily elected to accept that outcome. As a result, families who mediate their own resolutions are significantly less likely to return to court over and over again to resolve future disputes.
Matthew Jolly has helped countless families successfully negotiate agreed resolutions.
For families who struggle to reach agreements, mediation may not be the best option. However, litigation is often an unattractive alternative. It can take weeks to get even the most basic issue in front of the court and costs thousands of dollars in attorney fees. Further, the courts are often overwhelmed and do not have the resources to give every issue that comes before them sufficient time and attention. For these situations, private arbitration offers an alternative.
In arbitration, families can choose their decision-maker and ensure that whoever is deciding the matter brings relevant experience and expertise. Further, they can tailor the process to meet their specific needs. Some issues can be resolved with simple written submissions outlining the dispute. Others require testimony, cross examination, or even additional discovery to be fully and fairly addressed. Arbitration gives families the ability to pick and choose the amount of process that they believe their particular dispute requires and, in the process, take some control over both how long the process takes and how expensive it is.
Matthew Jolly has served as an arbitrator in numerous matters. He has experience acting as an arbitrator for disputes for a wide variety of issues including resolving child-related decisions, child support, spousal maintenance, and complex property division.
Matthew Jolly has served on the Guardian ad Litem Registry for the King County Superior Court since 2003. He has completed investigations and issued reports for countless families.
A guardian ad litem or parenting evaluation is the process by which a person designated by the court or the parents develops recommendations for a parenting plan for a child or children. These recommendations typically deal primarily with the residential schedule of time that the child spends with each parent. However, recommendations can also address such problems as conflict management, decision-making authority, counseling for a parent or child, substance abuse problems, domestic violence issues, or special needs of a child.
As a Guardian ad Litem, Matthew Jolly does not work for either parent. His role is to develop recommendations for the court that are in the best interests of the children. As such, He is an advocate on behalf of those interests and does not owe a duty of allegiance to either parent. This is true even when one parent is paying 100% of the costs.
Each case and family can have different requirements and investigative needs. While Matthew Jolly has a general process that he follows in most cases, the process can be modified or adjusted depending on the specific issues involved or other factors such as time constraints. A typical evaluation will include a review of relevant court filings, questionnaires for the parents, interviews of the parents, telephone interviews of family members and involved professionals, and observations of the parents and children in their home. Depending on the age of the children involved, the evaluation can also include an interview of the child. At the end of the evaluation, a written report is provided to the court and parties outlining the findings and making specific recommendations on behalf of the family.
Guardians ad Litem are typically appointed either by agreement of both parents or by a Judge or Court Commissioner who is seeking more information about a family’s circumstances.
Not every family wants or needs to appoint a Guardian ad Litem on behalf of their children. Some prefer a more limited means of obtaining neutral and professional recommendations regarding parenting disputes. For those families, it often makes sense to appoint a private parenting evaluator. Unlike a Guardian ad Litem, a parenting evaluator typically does not take any ongoing role in the litigation and is not required to appear at court hearings. This can lead to cost savings for the parties.
As a parenting evaluator, Matthew Jolly does not work for either parent. His role is to develop recommendations for the court that are in the best interests of the children. As such, he is an advocate on behalf of those interests and does not owe a duty of allegiance to either parent. This is true even when one parent is paying 100% of the costs.
Each case and family can have different requirements and investigative needs. While Matthew Jolly has a general process that he follows in most cases, the process can be modified or adjusted depending on the specific issues involved or other factors such as time constraints. A typical evaluation will include a review of relevant court filings, questionnaires for the parents, interviews of the parents, and telephone interviews of family members and involved professionals. Depending on the age of the children involved, the evaluation can also include an interview of the child. At the end of the evaluation, a written report is provided to the court and parties outlining the findings and making specific recommendations on behalf of the family.
Parenting evaluators are typically appointed either by agreement of both parents or by a Judge or Court Commissioner who is seeking more information about a family’s circumstances.
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