Are all conciliators attorneys or retired judges?

Because conciliators offer specific feedback on the strength of each party’s position, nearly all qualified conciliators are practicing family law attorneys and/or retired judges. As noted above, retired judges are often highly qualified to offer feedback to clients regarding contested legal issues. However, where the real goal of conciliation is to seek resolution of the case, many clients and attorneys feel that a conciliator’s most important skill set is the ability to mediate issues once the conciliation process is underway.