Divorce Trends: CMDR’s Client Population

September 1, 2006
Written by Staff at The Centre for Mediation & Dispute Resolution

Divorce Trends: CMDR’s Client Population

For over 24 years the Centre for Mediation & Dispute Resolution has been in the business of helping people reach agreements while preserving their ability to maintain future relationships.
Each year we look back at our client population, identifying discernible changes and trends. In considering our separating, divorcing, and post-divorce clients, we have observed the following:

• An increased number of couples who wish to structure a joint physical custody arrangement
• An increased number of couples who are business partners, as well as marital partners
• An increased number of individuals, who did not mediate their divorce, who are now electing mediation as a means to resolve post-divorce issues, particularly in the area of support and funding their children’s college educations
• An increased number of couples where one party is looking for new employment
• An increased number of couples experiencing a decrease in family income
• An increased number of couples entering mediation, as a last resort, after protracted litigation
• An increased number of couples who are self-employed sole proprietors or the principal stock holders of a closely-held corporation

Trends and changes evident in the divorcing or divorced population are of course indicative of economic conditions affecting the state of the country. The war, the unpredictable stock market, and the high cost of fuel, to mention a few economic indicators, significantly affect everyone. Individuals undergoing the breakup of a relationship are especially vulnerable since they have to finance two homes at a time when income sources may be less predictable and even less available.

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