Mediation is the most popular and fastest growing form of alternative dispute resolution.
It is a process in which disputing parties get together under the guidance of an impartial mediator in an attempt to find a mutually-satisfactory settlement as quickly and effectively as possible. In the US, mediation has proved to be so successful that it is now compulsory in more than half of the states. In other words, people wanting to go to court must first satisfy the court that they have tried mediation and that it has failed. Throughout the UK and Ireland and in other European states, mediation is a new concept and that, in itself, is what makes it so exciting. It is a process that has been tried and tested.