| An attorney shows bilingual people how they can | | | | lawyers. Tell them that you are looking to establish a |
| serve their community and themselves by doing | | | | referral relationship with a great mediator. Ask them |
| something that is fairly easy. | | | | how many mediations they have done and what their |
| If you speak two languages fluently and you have ties | | | | success rate is. Ask them how long a mediation |
| to ethnic communities, you have something valuable, | | | | usually takes and how much they charge. Ask if they |
| something lawyers would pay for. With a bit of | | | | are predominantly mediators or if they also do litigation. |
| research and connections to non English speakers, you | | | | Ask them if it would be worth $250 for you to bring |
| can make a very good income on your day off. How | | | | them a couple and do the translation for the day. You |
| many people tell you their problems just because you | | | | may have to negotiate your translation fee but you |
| speak their language? There are a lot of people who | | | | are worth at least $150! Just to compare, I have done |
| are staying in a marriage just because they don't | | | | over 185 mediations and have 100% success rate. My |
| know who they can trust. They trust you and you can | | | | entire practice is mediation and only mediation. On |
| introduce them to a lawyer who will help them. They | | | | average it takes me between 4-7 hours to do a |
| need the help and are willing to pay for it, they just | | | | mediation. I have very special skills that most lawyers |
| don't know where to go. | | | | don't have in that I was a special education teacher for |
| Can you even imagine how many couples stay | | | | many years and have a Masters in teaching severely |
| together because they are intimidated by divorce | | | | emotionally disturbed children, so I have yet to meet a |
| court? They have heard the horror stories about nasty | | | | couple I couldn't work with. But there are a lot of skilled |
| divorces and they don't want to get involved in an ugly | | | | mediators who are dying for new business. It is best to |
| court fight. Those kinds of couples are PERFECT for | | | | work with a lawyer who is a mediator, that way they |
| mediation. If you don't know these folks, talk to people | | | | can do all the legal forms and get everything done for |
| to see if they know couples like this. You want to ask | | | | the couple. Beware of lawyers who claim to be |
| around the community and see who fits this | | | | mediators but are really litigators in sheep's clothing. Be |
| description. The last piece of the puzzle is to find the | | | | sure that at least half of all legal work they do involves |
| mediator. | | | | mediation. With just a little work, you can have a |
| Find a good phone book and look under Divorce | | | | steady stream of clients to translate for and you can |
| Assistance or Mediation. Call around and interview the | | | | help others and yourself at the same time. |