Q: I recently filed a modification of custody and was told that the next course of action is mediation.
Is it true that evidence brought up during a mediation cannot be brought up in court before a judge. Since i know my ex and i wont be able to agree during mediation.
A:
At trial, you can generally testify as to what the other party said to you. One exception to this is usually that comments that a person said to you as part of a formal mediation session are not allowed to be disclosed in Court.
Thus, generally yes, statements made in mediation are generally not able to be disclosed in evidence. This prevents a person from saying at trial, "well in mediation they said they would have given me that"...or similar statements at trial. This is to encourage the parties to each make some concessions in mediation to try to find a resolution.
However, not all evidence presented in mediation, is protected. The parties might exchange financial documents, such as tax returns or bank statements, in mediation which could later be offered as evidence in trial. Also, there are other exceptions depending on the specific facts of your case.
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