Mediation allows individuals and organizations to maintain control of the decisions that affect their future. Mediation is a voluntary process where participants create solutions that meet their mutual needs and interests. Further, the mediation process gives the participants experience with conflict resolution methods that they can use in resolving future disputes. Any dispute that arises between two or more individuals or entities can be mediated. Mediation can be especially effective when the issues are complex or when there is a high level of emotion surrounding the dispute.
All parties participate in the mediation session.
Mediation is not a process to determine guilt or innocence. The mediator assists the parties in clearly defining the issues in dispute, guides the communication process, helps participants resolve misunderstandings, walks the participants through exploring options and facilitates an outcome which meets the specific interests of the parties involved. Individuals are given the power to articulate their expectations and interests and craft a solution which directly meets these interests. The mediator is an impartial third party with conflict resolution training and skills who assists people during the process of arriving at a mutually agreeable solution. In contrast to the traditional adversarial approach where a judge or arbitrator holds an evidentiary hearing, listens to the cases prepared by each party's counsel and makes a judgment - in mediation, the mediator acts as a catalyst, helping to create possible solutions on which the parties can agree, facilitating the parties' negotiations and assisting in developing a written document.