Welcome to my website. I am pleased to announce the opening of our brand new law firm, Graham & Graham, P.C., in the beautiful old Exchange Hall in South Acton, pictured above.
Graham & Graham, P.C. serves the greater Metro-west Boston area, including the towns of Acton, Concord, and surrounding communities. Our focus is on Real Estate, Business Law, Divorce Mediation, and Estate Planning. You can read about our new practice in greater detail by clicking on the image of Exchange Hall, above. That link will take you directly to our firm website but this site will remain my own, dedicated to Divorce Mediation.
My byline has always been "Putting Children First". That's
because, whatever else we adults need or want to do, I believe that all
of us want to do our best for our children. Finding a
way to end your marriage that preserves your self-respect and helps you
to imagine a future relationship with your soon-to-be ex-spouse
(because, as one Probate Court Judge was so fond of saying at each and
every divorce hearing "there can be ex-husbands and ex-wives, but there
are no ex-parents.") is the best thing you can do for your children, and
for yourself.
Mediation as an alternative to contested divorce can save you money (a lot of money), open the door to a new and more constructive relationship with your former spouse (or soon-to-be former spouse), and provide a good foundation for the resolution of any future conflicts. This is critically important if you have children, but even if you don't, finding a way forward that allows you to remember what was best about the person you married is infinitely preferable to embroiling yourself in such conflict that you cut yourself off from remembering anything good about your past. Who wants that?
To encourage more couples to try mediation, I offer a free half-hour introductory mediation session for potential new clients. There are others in my profession who do the same. I encourage you to check out the Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation for a list of my fellow practitioners, many of whom list their hourly rates and usual fees. As a group, we mediators are interested in promoting mediation as an alternative to contested divorce - and we know that means doing everything possible at the outset to set the table for a successful mediation. And THAT means making sure that our clients have had the opportunity to educate themselves and choose the mediator with whom they feel most comfortable. The proper "fit" between mediator and clients can mean the difference between a successful mediation and one that fails, and sometimes the only way to determine if the chemistry between you and your mediator is good is by meeting him or her in person and getting a feel for how it would be to work alongside them.
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