Mediation is the facilitation of a conflict between two parties by an independent person (the mediator). The mediator is impartial and therefore a neutral discussion leader.

During or after a divorce, communication between you and your (former) partner can be difficult. This may be due to emotions, misunderstanding and distrust.

The mediator facilitates the discussions and seeks to guide communication between both parties in the right direction. Mediation can then help you make arrangements together in a constructive manner. For example, regarding the care arrangements for the children, maintenance, pensions, the home, etc. These are then recorded in a parenting plan, divorce settlement agreement and/or settlement agreement.

Benefits of mediation;

• You will often find a solution quickly.
• During mediation, you and your (former) partner can discuss the issues and resolve differences of opinion. This can help preserve contact after mediation.
• Together with your (former) partner, you decide what arrangements to make.
• Mediation is tailored to your needs and focused on making sound arrangements for your specific situation.

In most cases, 4 to 5 sessions are sufficient to reach good arrangements. The costs of the mediator are often shared by both parties.

Although the professionals at Hoek & Steen will preferably try to resolve every conflict through mutual consultation, it is unfortunately sometimes unavoidable to take legal action.

In that case, it is important to engage a lawyer you trust, who puts your interests first and guides, informs and advises you carefully.

A family law lawyer helps resolve problems in the area of family law. This may include a divorce and everything that comes with it, such as arranging parental authority, reaching a contact arrangement for the children, child and/or spousal maintenance, and the division of marital property.

Matters such as the recognition of a child, a name change, guardianship or administration are also family law issues on which a family law lawyer can advise, provide guidance and represent you in legal proceedings.

Hoek & Steen has many years of experience in family law. In these often complex and emotional proceedings, we are happy to stand by your side as your family law lawyer.

We know what you are entitled to and where the opportunities lie.

At Hoek & Steen, we are also happy to assist you with legal matters.

Would you like to learn to communicate more effectively, deal better with conflicts and build stronger relationships, both at work and beyond?

Or are you looking, as an organisation, for training that strengthens collaboration and helps teams deal professionally with tensions?

Hoek & Steen's training courses are available for individual professionals as well as teams and organisations. They focus on mediation skills, communication and conflict management, with practical tools that can be applied directly in daily practice.

Individual participants can enrol in open training courses. Organisations can choose customised programmes tailored to the specific dynamics and goals of the team.

All training courses combine practical experience with concrete exercises, reflection and applicable techniques. The goal: more guidance in conversations, more insight into interaction and more confidence in challenging situations.

A multi-day skills training course for professionals

Anyone who regularly conducts or facilitates conversations knows that it is not only about what is said, but above all how it is said. Under pressure, people fall into patterns: persuading, avoiding, becoming more forceful or shutting down. This training helps you become more confident in communication and better at guiding collaboration and solutions, even when tensions rise.

The CUNSTENAAR training is a practice-oriented series of three sessions. Each session focuses on concrete skills, with room to practise, apply them in practice and return with experiences. The training is based on the CUNST principles: Constructive communication, Outcome-oriented work, Neutrality, Collaboration, Transformation.

What will be covered?

• Mediation techniques and communication skills
• Insight into communication styles (your own and those of others)
• Conflict management and de-escalation
• Negotiation skills and working towards agreements
• Practical tools to keep conversations clear, safe and focused

The training is intended for professionals, managers and teams who want to deepen their skills and apply them directly in their daily practice.

Afterwards, participants will have more guidance in difficult conversations, greater insight into interaction and conflict patterns, and more confidence to work constructively towards solutions.

Many people find having a difficult conversation daunting. As soon as emotions become visible (anger, frustration, silence or even tears), uncertainty arises. Should the conversation be paused? Will it become uncomfortable? Has something “gone wrong”?

This one-day training focuses on how to deal professionally with emotions in conversations. Not by avoiding them or ending the conversation, but by recognising them and using them as valuable information.

Emotions often provide insight into what is really going on: underlying needs, boundaries or concerns that have not yet been expressed in words. Those who learn to understand these signals can deepen conversations and guide them more effectively.

What will be covered?

• What happens when emotions escalate during a conversation?
• How do people respond to tension, and what is your own response?
• What should you do when someone cries, becomes angry or withdraws?
• How do you remain calm and professional?
• How do you use emotional signals to achieve real clarity?

The training offers practical techniques and concrete interventions for challenging moments in conversations. Participants learn how to regulate tension, create safety and continue conversations constructively, even when things become tense.

Afterwards, participants will have more confidence not to avoid difficult conversations, but to handle them carefully and effectively.

Whether you are a team leader, HR professional, mediator in training or simply want to deepen your communication skills: our training courses are accessible to everyone and applicable in a variety of professional contexts.

We offer both open training courses and tailored programmes for organisations. The latter are tailored to the specific needs of your team or company culture, such as leadership training, team communication or conflict prevention.

Our training courses are based on years of practical experience in mediation, coaching and legal advice. We combine theory with concrete exercises and cases, so that you can return to work with skills you can apply immediately.

After the training, you will be better equipped to recognise tensions in time, guide conversations effectively and address conflicts constructively, with greater confidence and a results-oriented approach.

A divorce is an emotional time. However desirable it may be to part ways as harmoniously as possible, the world of blame, conflict and frustration is always lurking!

The impact of a divorce is often underestimated. It is a difficult and sensitive process in which people are confronted with challenging issues. How do you deal with:

• A family falling apart?
• The loss of the shared home?
• A different financial situation?
• Family relationships coming under pressure?
• A new partner?
• Different parenting and caregiving styles?

Due to intense emotions, a person may sometimes display behaviour that is not their ‘own’ or desired behaviour. Patterns that have long been present in the relationship are also now truly brought to a head; even more intense arguments, even more reproaches, shutting down, no communication whatsoever, etc.

Through personalised divorce coaching, we can prevent a divorce from turning into a bitter conflict.

With Hoek & Steen’s coaching programme, we offer (former) partners, individually or jointly, support by providing insight into emotions, communication patterns and conflict styles, so that they can adapt their own behaviour to achieve a different outcome.

In addition, we teach parents how to best support their children during a relationship crisis or divorce in order to minimise any possible harm to them, how to deal with differences in parenting, break patterns and create peace and prospects for the future.