Dealing with domestic disputes is often painful. Courts are often not in the best position to make decisions about family matters. Mediation eases the difficulty of the court process. It gives parties a chance to talk together about how to resolve the matters in a way that address both present and future needs in a manner that is acceptable to everyone involved.  It can reduce stress and uncertainty.

Mediation in this program is an informal process where parties try to resolve a dispute without the hostility that is sometimes associated with going to court.  In mediation, the parties meet in a private, confidential setting to work out a solution to their problem with the help of a neutral third person, the mediator.  A mediator does not decide who is right or wrong.  The mediator does not force the disputing parties to reach agreement or to accept particular settlement terms.  The mediator helps each side to better understand their situation.  The mediator fosters a problem solving atmosphere and lessens the temptation to engage in unproductive behavior; the mediator ensures that each of the parties to the dispute has an opportunity to be heard and understood; and the mediator encourages the parties to create a solution that meets their individual needs.

For more information on this or other mediation programs, contact New Hampshire Conflict Resolution Association at:

http://www.nhcra.org/info.htm

  For local information contact Lance M. Zack at 447-3003

Small Claims mediation, without charge, will begin on Sept 1 at 13 District Court sites. The remaining District Court sites will have small claims mediation available in one year. Under SB63, the mediation program will be funded by a $5.00 filing fee increase on all small claims cases filed as of July 1, 2005. Participation is voluntary. 

The program will be initiated on September 1 in the following district courts: Manchester District Court, Nashua District Court, Concord District Court, Derry District Court, Dover district Court, Rochester District Court, Laconia District Court, Lancaster District Court, Claremont/Newport District Courts, Jaffrey/Peterborough District Court, Plymouth District Court, and Southern Carroll County District Court. The remaining district courts will follow by the end of 2006.

If  you really want to have a judge decide your case you always have that option. In the district court, you can try mediation and if it doesn’t work they can have a hearing before a judge that day.   If both parties to a case in a location where the small claims mediation program is not yet available, the clerk will make provisions to transfer the case. 

For further information go to the NH court web site at:

http://www.courts.state.nh.us/district/claims.htm

  For local information contact Lance M. Zack at 447-3003

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 Diversion

Court Based Juvenile Court Diversion is an alternative to the formal court process for offenders between the ages of 11 and 17. It works within the understanding that the needs of victims, offenders, and communities cannot be effectively addressed in isolation from one another. It is provided in both Carroll County District Courts and throughout the state under RSA 169B&C.  Entry into the program is by agreement of the parties (youth and parents), the prosecuting police department and the juvenile probation department.  If your child has become court involved, please ask your local PD about this option.  Below is a brief description of how diversion works in our County.

After going through a screening/needs assessment, youth in our program and their parent/guardian meet with a panel of community volunteers to develop an individually based accountability plan. The youth has 90 days to complete the tasks assigned by the panel. He/She checks in weekly with the program staff to monitor and support their success. Upon completion the youth meet again with their volunteer panel to assure that the contract conditions have been met. The court is then petitioned to drop the pending charges and seal the file with no further judicial action.

Community involvement is key to the success of this program.  Accountability plans are developed through the involvement of volunteers representing the community at large.  This agency is blessed with the active participation and support of more than 100 individuals. These volunteers not only serve as panelists involved in the development of the youths contracts and review panelists upon the youths completion of the program, but additionally act as informal ambassadors for the program and the youths involved, opening doors of opportunity for additional community service sites as well as supports and services.  Our panelist comes from all walks of life and vocations.  We are quite proud of the fact that amongst our 74 panelists are 16 youths who have successfully completed the program and 11 of their parents.
The third significant area of community involvement with our program, and one of our most viable assets, is the receptiveness of individuals and organizations within our county to being community service mentor sites. They provide diverse venues for the youths to complete their community service.  In partnership with the community, we presently offer the youth 78 different sites at which they can perform their community service.  These folks, like our other core of volunteers, represent significant diversity of opportunity inclusive of but not limited to: food pantries, day cares, educational services, Project Succeed, the Dinner Bells, U.S. Department of Forestry, elder care, historical societies, and animal shelters. 

In addition to these ongoing opportunities are civic events.  A partial list of such that youths have been engaged with this year include: Madison Old Home Week, Huggin’s Hospital Fair, Arts in the Park, Jen’s Friends, the Jim Noice Memorial Ski Race and Bark in the Park.  Last year youths in the Diversion program performed over 2000 hours of community service to this Carroll County.  Mentors complete evaluations of the youth’s performance to be reviewed by their accountability panels during the youth’s closing meetings, and the sites are monitored through scheduled and spot visits by our program coordinator.  Many  youth continue on as volunteers long after their obligation through our program is achieved there are several cases in which the youth has been hired on as paid employees after their program completion.

In working partnership with numerous county agencies we have facilitated youth and family engagement in additional supports and services inclusive of: mental health, private therapists, family mediation, mentor programs, and drug and alcohol services.  Many of youths who enter are program uninvolved in scholastic pursuits are re-enrolled in school or pursuing alternative education options such as: the Community School, Alt. Ed., Lakeside Academy, Job Core, etc. by the time they have completed our program. Those that choose a different path are made aware of services through NH employment and Step-by-Step career counseling.

Our programs provide a second chance to low risk youthful offenders as well as youth and families in crisis/transition.  This in turn translates to significant time and dollar savings to the already overburdened Court, Law Enforcement and Juvenile Probation Department.  The recidivism rate of the youths successfully completing our diversion program is quite low- (approximately 12 percent), and our success in re-engaging youths with their community and perhaps as or more significantly families, quite high.  Thus, the program allows judicial parties to focus their already overextended resources on offenders more appropriate for the formal juvenile justice venue.

For further program information go to the CAP web site at:

  http://www.tccap.org/youthalternatives.htm

  For local information contact Lance M. Zack at 447-3003

The Superior and the Family Court offer the opportunity for divorcing couples to go through a Marital Neutral Evaluation Program.  Experienced attorneys are approved by the Chief Justice of the Superior Court and the Supervisor Justices of the Family Division to act as Neutral Evaluators at the request of the parties.  The Neutral Evaluators are attorneys who participate in a training program sponsored by the court and then volunteer their services at no cost to the parties.  The goal of Neutral Case Evaluation is to help parties resolve the disputed issues in a less formal and less intimidating setting.  The Neutral Evaluator will listen to each party’s view of the problematic issues in the case and will attempt to help the parties talk about the issues in a reasonable and constructive manner. 

The conversations that occur during a Neutral Evaluation are confidential and cannot be held against either party if the cases go to trial.  Some or all of the issues may be settled during the Neutral Case Evaluation session.  The Neutral Evaluator may explain to the parties what in his/her estimate is the likely outcome of the unresolved issues given the strengths and weakness of each case.  The Neutral Evaluators determination can be accepted or rejected by the parties. 

 For further information go to the NH Court Website at:

http://www.courts.state.nh.us/adrp/neutralsupedescribe.htm

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