Early Neutral Assessment / Evaluation

What is an Early Neutral Assessment/ Early Neutral Evaluation?

Oftentimes, when parties are going through a legal action, the Court will require the parties to attend some form of Alternative Dispute Resolution. Most often, parties will go through mediation, wherein a neutral third party will attempt to facilitate an agreement amongst the parties. However, sometimes, mediation does not work. When mediation fails, the parties might also consider another form of Alternative Dispute Resolution called the Early Neutral Assessment (ENA) or Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE).

There are a few differences between mediation and ENAs or ENEs. The primary difference is that with ENAs or ENEs, the neutral third-party evaluator will provide you with their stance or their recommendations on the same. Simply, with ENAs or ENEs, after each side has had the opportunity to provide their positions to the matter, the evaluator will provide the parties with their objective (non-binding) opinion on the case. Therefore, it is imperative that your ENA/ENE evaluator have the requisite experience in family law to be able to form a knowledgeable point of view on your matter.

Our attorneys here at The Harris Law Firm have extensive experience in handling ENAs or ENEs. Please feel free to contact us should you have additional questions on the same.