The store, unwilling to admit any liability, had not bothered to check on her condition after the incident, infuriating the customer and setting the stage for litigation. The mediation session gave all the parties a chance to sit around a table together and clearly state their positions. The path was cleared for resolution. Nora Jaeschke of N.N. Jaeschke Inc., a management company that frequently uses mediation services. For businesses that typically handle large numbers of disputes, mediation is particularly useful.
Most people are anxious to solve their problems, but there is just a lack of communication.
Jaeschke, a frequent user of the Mediation Center's services, says mediation can resolve disputes about 90 percent of the time. For those that remain unsettled, she says, the parties at least come away with a better understanding of each other's positions. O'Brien talks enthusiastically about the center's expanding role in the community, the energy of its mediators and the satisfaction of bringing people together to solve their problems. I'm in this because I welcome conflict. I think it can propel us to a different place.