Something to divide? Settle it first, then file it yourselves.
The rest of this site is for couples who have already agreed on everything. If you have a house, a retirement account, debt or support still open, you need a written agreement before anything can be filed. One neutral mediator helps the two of you reach it and writes it up — and then your divorce goes through as uncontested.
One neutral mediator
Not a lawyer for you, not a lawyer for your spouse. A New Jersey attorney acting as a neutral, working with both of you at once. They give neither of you legal advice, and they decide nothing — what you agree is yours.
A Marital Settlement Agreement
The mediator drafts it: who keeps the house, how the retirement account is divided, who carries which debt, whether anyone pays support. It is the document the court incorporates into your judgment.
You file the divorce
With the agreement settled, your case is uncontested — and that is what this software prepares. Your case here is waiting; the agreement goes into the packet and you file it yourselves.
$1000 to begin, billed by the firm
A flat $1000 starts the mediation, with an hourly rate beyond a set number of hours. Gray Law Group, LLC sets that fee and bills you directly. Clear Parting Docs takes no share of it, and charges nothing for passing on your request.
Worth the comparison: two retained attorneys commonly run into the thousands each, and the low-cost attorney advertising you have seen on billboards is for simple uncontested divorces — the kind with nothing to divide. It does not cover contested issues, which is exactly what mediation is for.
Questions people ask first
What is divorce mediation?
One neutral person — here, a New Jersey attorney acting as mediator — works with both spouses to settle what is still open, and writes it up as a Marital Settlement Agreement. The mediator decides nothing and imposes nothing; the agreement is whatever the two of you reach.
Is the mediator my lawyer?
No. The mediator is neutral and represents neither spouse. They do not give legal advice to either of you. Either of you may have your own attorney review the agreement before you sign it, and for anything substantial that is a good idea.
Can one lawyer really work with both of us?
As a mediator, yes — because they are not representing either side. What a New Jersey attorney cannot do is represent both spouses, which is a different role. A mediator is neutral by definition.
What does mediation cost in New Jersey?
This mediator starts at a flat $1000, with an hourly rate beyond a set number of hours. The fee is set and billed by Gray Law Group, LLC directly to you. Clear Parting Docs takes no share of it and charges nothing for passing on your request. For comparison, two retained attorneys commonly run into the thousands each.
Do we still have to go to court?
Usually not. Once you have a signed agreement, your divorce can be filed as uncontested and decided on the papers under Directive #01-25 — which is exactly what this software prepares. Mediation is the step before filing, not instead of it.
What if we only disagree about one thing?
That is the common case, and it is the cheapest kind of mediation. Most couples arrive agreeing on nearly everything with two or three items left — the house, the retirement account, how support works.
What if mediation does not work?
Then you each hire your own attorney and the case proceeds the ordinary way. Nothing said in mediation obliges you to settle, and you have lost only the mediator's fee — far less than two retainers.
Is mediation right if I am afraid of my spouse?
No. Mediation depends on two people bargaining as equals, and a neutral who cannot advocate for either side cannot correct an imbalance. If there is fear, coercion or control, speak to a lawyer, and the New Jersey Domestic Violence Hotline is free and confidential at 1-800-572-7233.
Clear Parting Docs is software and is not a law firm. It gives no legal advice and represents no one. Mediation is provided by Gray Law Group, LLC, a New Jersey law firm, which sets and bills its own fee; we take no share of it. A mediator is neutral and advises neither spouse, and you are free to use any New Jersey mediator — nothing here requires this one. More about the firm · How New Jersey mediation works