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Anon at 31.5 - however, wjhere parties are entering intoa pre- or post nuptia agreement, proper independent legal advice is one of th thigs a court will look at when deciding whether or not to follow the terms ofthe agreement.

And of course parties who negotiate in good faith, whether directly or with the help of medititors, generally have no issue with their spouse seeking advice , and indeed will welcome them doing so, since it ensures that they will fully understand the terms they are discussing .

Your comment seems to fall into the trap of assuming tht getting legal advice = fighting through the courts. In most cases, family solicitors will supportand encouragetheir clients to reach an agreement and it's ften helpful running along side other methods of negotiation such as mediation.

Mediation can be a very valuable tool but it is not appropriate for every set of circumstances. I find a lot of my cient find it is useful to have legal advice available to them as they go throughthe mediation process, to better understnad tha options available, the pros and cons of potnetial settlments being discussed etc. It's not one or the other, ideally they work in tandem.