WAW? Would Love Opinions. Part 11

[Holding]

J9, I'm sorry your W is pushing for D now. You've done a good job at DBing, and you really gave it your all! Sadly it just takes one person to want to end a M.

For mediation, my XW and I used L's. I'm certainly glad I did. My XW was proposing that we could "share" her L, but there was no way I was going to do that. Then she acted surprised when I told her I would have my L at mediation, and she said something along the lines of "Oh really, you're taking your L? You know, you don't need to have one at mediation." She was probably hoping I'd walk in without mine while she had hers, so she could steamroll me.

A L can also help with any surprises at mediation. My XW had been saying for months that she wanted 50/50 custody. But all of a sudden at mediation she asked for primary custody. My L had helped me prepare for things, so we were able to quickly dismiss that proposal.

I will have a big legal bill, but I get the peace of mind in knowing that I got as much as I could in the mediation. That's not a punitive statement - I needed a L to ensure I got a fair share.

In the end, you know your W and sitch best, so it's your call about how to proceed with mediation.