Paternity Mediation
Mediation of parentage-related terms — parenting time, support, and related issues — outside of a contested courtroom process.
In person in the Orlando area (Orange, Seminole & Osceola counties) • Virtual throughout Florida
What This Mediation Can Cover
- Time-sharing schedules for unmarried parents
- Support conversations alongside the guidelines your attorneys apply
- Communication and decision-making arrangements
- Steps for finalizing agreed terms with counsel
How Sessions Typically Work
The process is the same structured, neutral conversation used in other family matters, focused on the practical arrangements for the child. The parties make the decisions; the mediator facilitates.
Establishing legal parentage itself happens through the courts or by statutory operation — formal acknowledgment or adjudication. Mediation is for what comes after, when parentage is not in dispute: the parenting time, decision-making, and support terms for the child.
A contested parentage question, a DNA dispute, or a request to disestablish paternity is not this service. Those questions belong with counsel and the court before a parenting or support session is useful.
What to Have Ready
- Any existing case, acknowledgment, or order
- Recent income documentation if support will be discussed
- School and activity calendars if a time-sharing schedule will be built
- Written priorities
When this process is not a fit
Mediation is voluntary and only works when both people can speak for themselves and the conversation can stay balanced. It is usually the wrong tool when there is an injunction or a history of domestic violence that would compromise the process, when assets appear to be hidden, or when a party needs emergency court relief. When mediation is not appropriate →
Counsel remains counsel. Agreed terms are written down for review and drafting by each party’s own attorney. The mediator does not give legal advice, interpret a governing order, or file anything with the court.
Discussing Paternity
Ready to start? The first step is a short request with basic conflict-check information only — substance comes after the conflict check clears.
Request Mediation← All family mediation services
Related: parenting & time-sharing mediation →
What Florida law requires in a parenting plan, explained →
Is child support negotiable? Explained →