Last updated on April 13th, 2015 at 01:50 pm

While this is a subject that I hope our readers never have to worry about, according to a report by the Office for National Statistics 10.8 out of every 1,000 married population ended in a divorce in 2011 with a total of 117,558 divorces.  The same report also estimates that 42% of marriages end in divorce in England and Wales !

I was pondering these figures and wondering how many of these were amicable and how many resulted in fights in court when I came across the idea of family mediation.   This is an alternative means of resolving issues in divorce and separation without going to court and the good news is that mediation can help where the problems concern children, property and finances.

It’s a voluntary and confidential process which is lead by an impartial, trained, mediator who is there to manage the process and make sure that both parties reach a mutually acceptable agreement by managing a series of constructive meetings – apparently the complete process usually takes between three and five 1.5 to 2 hour sessions and is cheaper than going to court to battle out the issues.

The mediator will even make sure that any children’s views are taken into account if possible by using a someone that has been trained to speak to children about these kinds of stressful issues.

As a small business owner if you are separating or divorcing there is probably property or finances involved and in this case both you and your partner will be asked to complete a financial disclosure which means that both of you have to share full details of their financial circumstances including :-

• Mortgages
• Property valuations
• Bank Statements going back 12 months for each bank account you may have including savings accounts
• Insurance surrender value quotations
• Details of any ISAs and PEPs that are owned
• Wage Slips
• P60 for the last financial year
• Copy of the last 2 years business accounts
• Details of anything that might affect the business value (for example if you are thinking of merging or selling the business)
• Details of any self-employment or partnership income
• Pension details and the cash transfer values
• Valuations of any shares held

As you will see from the list above basically both of you will have to disclose the details of their capital and income.

If you are thinking about using a mediation service then it’s suggested that you contact a local specialist, if you can’t find one or don’t know where to look the Family Mediators Association should be able to help you find a local mediator or your local solicitor may be able to refer you to a specialist.