About Mediation

Advantages of Mediation

Mediation of disputes is a wonderful way to resolve disputes without the necessity of taking your case to a final trial in front of a judge. It generally saves the clients thousands of dollars in attorneys’ fees and affords each party much more participation and control than would be allowed in a bench trial. Just a few of the advantages of mediation are:

• Control — Allows the parties to maintain control over the outcome of their case rather than surrender that control in the hands of a judge or jury.
• Avoids Uncertainty — Reaching an agreement in mediation avoids “throwing the dice” in a final contested trial and losing the ability to control the outcome.
• Creative Solutions — Allows the parties to explore alternative, creative solutions not available in a courtroom.
• Early End to Conflict — Avoids the enormous pain, heartache and financial burdens of protracted litigation and a contested final trial. Confidentiality—Nothing said during mediation can be used as evidence nor disclosed to anyone, including a judge.

Mediation is hands-down the most effective and economical way of resolving legal disputes. Mediation allows the parties to retain control over the outcome of their case, and allows for alternative, creative solutions that could or would never be ordered by a judge or jury in a contested trial. Once the parties take a case to final trial in front of a judge or jury, they lose that control by handing it to a total stranger.

A Word About Confidentiality

What happens in mediation stays in mediation! Nothing said or disclosed in mediation can be used as evidence in Court. Nothing said by a party or attorney to the mediator can be disclosed to the other party or attorney (nor to anyone else) without the express permission of the disclosing party.

Conclusion

The value of settling your case in mediation cannot be over-emphasized. Besides the enormous additional attorney fees and expenses the parties will most likely incur through continued litigation, the emotional cost can be devastating to the parties and to their loved ones. There is absolutely no guarantee that either party will come out any better in Court than they will in mediation, and they could easily come out worse! Virtually all attorneys and judges agree that almost any family law case can and should be mediated to settlement rather than be taken to a final trial. It is my sincere hope and desire to successfully conclude each mediation with a signed Mediated Settlement Agreement which resolves all or most of the parties’ disputes. This will only happen if the parties and their attorneys join in my commitment to the mediation process and work in good faith towards reaching that agreement.