At the conclusion of the direct examination by your attorney (where you have testified to your side of your case), opposing counsel has the right to ask you questions about your testimony.
This is cross-examination. The purpose of cross-examination is to support your spouses' version of the facts and/or to discredit your testimony. This may be accomplished many ways, including trying to establish bias, incapacity or lack of knowledge, lack of opportunity to observe facts, and prior inconsistent statements.
What are some of the questions that your spouses’ attorney likely to ask. What follows are just a few questions you may face.
If you have testified to something that is favorable to your spouse, you may be asked a question about this first. This will emphasize the positive testimony about your spouse.
Most opposing attorneys are forceful in their cross-examinations. Some of this is because their client expects it. Some of it is for harassment to upset you so you lose your confidence. Initially, some attorneys appear friendly. Don't be lulled into believing they are there for any reason other than representing your spouse.
Opposing counsel will try to prove everything else you said is untrue or questionable, or that you really didn't have the opportunity to observe the true facts to make your conclusion. Did you say something that can open the door to put you or your actions in a bad light? What does your spouse know that you don’t want the world in general to know about you?
Using mediation will help you avoid all of this. Mediation is a closed procedure. You can be more open and forth coming as the entire session is private and confidential. The mediator and the people in the dispute must maintain the confidentiality of the information disclosed during mediation.
In mediation, participants often learn for the first time about the core of themselves and the other party – their spouse, their boss, their child, their employee. And that makes a big difference in the mediation process.
The procedure for requesting a trial varies from county to county. You should seek the advice of an attorney if you are not able to determine how to obtain a trial date. Many courts have information and forms available to the public either in their law libraries or their websites.
WHYmediate? Mediation Services
4500 South Lakeshore Drive Suite 300
Tempe, AZ 85282
(480) 777-5500
http://whymediate.solutions
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