Common Ground Divorce Mediation

"My intention in writing this review is not to slander or cause any defamation but rather in the hope of sparing another additional grief. To each their own though, (experience). Throughout my time with this business the agreements kept changing throughout. My initial conversation(s) with David prior to payment and before being handed over to other staff members were promising. What he told me vs. another staff member vs. another staff member were all very different things which caused much confusion. After communicating with them trying to make sense of the chaos I ended up researching how to attempt to do their job for them (learn the correct verbiage to input in the forms) which caused the turn around time of 7 days to be greatly prolonged due to them not fulfilling their portion(s). The engagement fee was paid and then contact was made with my now former spouse (including a text that was sent that included inaccurate legal information). In retrospect I'm better understanding why my then spouse did not take these "engagement" attempts from this company seriously. The rest of the payment was made ($2,500) and after the virtual meeting with a member of the staff (to gather information so that she could write up a rough draft of the divorce ppwk) I was provided a mostly blank formatted form with not much more than names and addresses filled in. When I questioned this things were twisted and turned into not being in my favor and in their defense. I bore with patience and the benefit of the doubt that perhaps there are misunderstandings that could be mutually resolved. This process took months when it should have only taken weeks if completed properly. I could provide more details but to keep this review short, it should suffice to say that I do not think the labor that this business offered/promised and was paid for was given. During a recent meeting (purpose: refund request) I was interrupted and talked over continually. From my perspective (recorded conversation?) this was not only disrespectful but the communication was in large a dominating one sided conversation. It was very unprofessional and unbefitting for a business centered around mediation. Despite proofs and logs they would not reimburse me and near the end even belittled the meeting ('wait, we're having this conversation over $2,500?'). Shortly after filing for divorce I tried to log into the company's portal where the final draft and communications were kept. I was denied access and when I called I was told that it was deleted because business was completed. Throughout this brutal season of my life this company added to my grief simply by not completing their portion of business (money given for select labor). Perhaps it was a difficult time for their business and usually things are not so "out of order" but business is business. I would not recommend this company due to my personal experience. Again, to each their own though, (experience)."

"Me & my ex-husband were basically a dream case. We kept things amicable. We didn't really have disagreements when it came to our decree. Dave was initially great to work with. But then everything was handed over to Liz. The communication was severely lacking. After two+ months of silence from Common Ground I finally called the Courthouse myself and was told they were missing some paperwork that we had already submitted to Liz. I submitted it directly to the court and we got an email from the court the very next day with a copy of the finalized decree signed by the judge. Three weeks later we got a message from Common Ground Mediation letting us know that judge had signed and it was final. I'm sure they regret sending me the survey to complete at the end of our process, lol. I'm seriously disappointed with Common Ground Mediation. Also, we had to pay $500 by Venmo to Dave in order to have our individual meetings at the beginning of the process. We were told this would be deducted from the total amount we had to pay. We forgot about this (we obviously had a lot on our minds) and paid the full $4,000. I contacted Liz a week or two ago and she told me Dave would Venmo me back the $500 we are owed. I've since heard nothing. And I just got online to access my account to message Liz and they have inactivated my link. BEWARE: it appears that once they have your money, that's the last you'll hear of them. Common Ground is over-priced compared to other mediators and it isn't worth the money for what you get. They're very nice people but that's where the recommendation ends on my part. Save yourself the trouble (and the money) and look elsewhere."

"Left an offer for annulment to be presented to my wife of 2 1/2 years and I left, as was recommended, following several argumentative sessions. My offer included cash to motivate her to get it over with. David let her take the cash even though she didn't sign the agreement! Days later she broke into my home (she lived in another County and robbed me blind!) He didn't file his required status report in the Annulment/Divorce case as is required. He was obviously improperly or illegally unilaterally serving my wife and likely listening to her attorney or OTHERS to whom he conspired."

"I found David by accident while I was researching attorneys. After the first consultation meeting, I was inspired to hire him to help with my divorce. He was very professional and kind. He is very knowledgeable about how to handle a difficult husbands which took so much emotional stress off of me. He took my phone calls when I was stressed or worried. After 2 mediation sessions we were able to come to an agreement. The total time for the divorce was under 4 months and we saved so much money! I highly recommend David and his staff!"