Family Mediation for Binational and International Families

For ten years, I have worked extensively with binational couples and families, particularly with ties to Germany, Japan, Singapore and other countries in Asia and Europe. I conduct mediations in German, English or Japanese.

When parents grew up in different countries, a separation involves more than the usual questions. Different legal systems, different expectations of family and parenthood, and the question of which country the children will live in all make agreement harder. At the same time, reliable agreements matter all the more, because cross-border court proceedings are lengthy and stressful.

Typical situations

• Separation and divorce when parents come from different countries
• Parenting arrangements across borders, holidays and trips to the home country
• Relocation of one parent, with or without the children
• Child support, division of assets, sale of the family home
• Differing views on upbringing, language and the children's cultural identity
• The transition from a couple relationship to a working co-parenting relationship

Conflicts in business families

In business families, family conflicts often affect the company directly. A planned handover to the next generation stalls as long as fundamental questions between parents, children and their partners remain unresolved.

I work on the family side: open conversation, clarifying expectations and roles, and how the family will deal with each other in the future. Corporate and tax matters remain with the family's advisors. I coordinate with them on request.

Legal questions

As a mediator, I do not give legal advice. Particularly for international families, I recommend having the agreement reviewed by lawyers before signing, in both countries if necessary. Mediation produces the agreement; legal review secures it.

Co-mediation

Where helpful, I work in co-mediation, for example with a colleague with a legal background or with ties to the other parent's country of origin. Whether this makes sense and what it costs, we discuss in the initial call.

Qualifications

• Mediator BAFM (German Federal Association for Family Mediation)
• MiKK Cross-Border Family Mediator, listed with MiKK e.V. (International Mediation Centre for Family Conflict and Child Abduction)
• Intercultural Mediator (Friedrich Schiller University Jena)
• Mediation languages: German, English, Japanese