The accused infringer has taken it on the chin. Not only has it incurred additional litigation expenses, it has also suffered adverse rulings in court. Virtually all IP disputes are suitable for mediation. These situations are not rare. But neither are they so frequent as to render mediation only occasionally appropriate.
Mediation is frequently appropriate.
Whereas, mediation cannot be the answer in every controversy, many patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret, licensing, joint venture, and research and development disputes may be successfully solved through mediation. An important factor in assuring success of mediation in IP disputes is the mediator. Often a misunderstanding among the parties, or by the mediator, as to what to expect in the mediation has suggested that perhaps it is the nature of the dispute that is the cause of failure to settle. On this score, the question often arises as to the importance of the mediator s familiarity with the technology, business or legal precepts at issue. The majority of informed observers would probably hold that the mediator s skill and experience in mediating is far more important than the mediator s familiarity with a specific technology, business or legal precept.