Conciliation Court Services is offered by the Superior Court under the authority of Arizona law (ARS § 25-381) for married parties who are considering or who are in the process of divorce. The focus of this brief conference is to assist parties in making an informed and thoughtful decision regarding their marital relationship. Upon completion of the conference, the parties may be referred to community-based services for further assistance if they indicate such an interest.
This conference is initiated by the filing of a Petition for Conciliation in any of the Conciliation Services regional offices. It is not necessary to have a divorce pending to file the Petition for Conciliation. Once a Petition for Conciliation has been accepted neither party may file for legal separation or dissolution for a period of 60 days. If such an action was filed previous to the acceptance of the Petition for Conciliation, the case may not be advanced until the 60 day "cooling off" period has expired.
When jurisdiction of the Court has been invoked by the acceptance of a Petition for Conciliation, both parties are required to attend the scheduled conferences. These conferences are conducted by a trained marriage and family professional, are held in private, and are confidential. During the process, no coercion is used to try to force a reconciliation. The final decision regarding the marriage is made by the spouses themselves.
Evaluation services allow the court to determine the best interests of the child(ren) involved in a potential separation or divorce. A Parenting Conference Conciliator, assigned by Conciliation Services, does this through non-confidential conferences with both parties. Factors considered include residential arrangements, time spent with each parent, and decision-making responsibility. The process identifies areas of agreement and significant disputes related to legal decision-making and parenting time.
During a court hearing, both parties are ordered by the judge to attend a parenting conference. There is a $300/person service fee for the conference.
The assigned Conciliator may review Department of Child Safety, law enforcement records, and other relevant information. Additional sources may be collected as needed, with documents requested by Conciliation Services and provided directly to the Conciliator.
The Parenting Conference includes joint and individual parent meetings, and possibly child interviews. Other parties may be interviewed at the Conciliator's discretion. If an agreement is reached and deemed in the child(ren)'s best interest, the Conciliator may recommend it to the court and address any concerns in the report.
The written report aims to provide the Court with information for determining legal decision-making and parenting time orders in the child(ren)'s best interest, considering relevant factors. The Conciliator submits the report within 60 days or 14 days before scheduled hearings, delivering it to the Court, counsel, or self-represented parties.