Other mediation services are geared to specific industries and activities. While there is no national program yet, the CBA will provide information on mediation for clients or lawyers embroiled in a battle over billing. The mediation atmosphere is less formal than court and can clear up common lawyer-client misunderstandings involving the retainer agreement, work done and different methods of billing the account. Date, time and place is agreed upon and an Agreement to Mediate sets out the terms of reference. So if you can't save the marriage maybe you can save on divorce costs by foregoing the high price, high hostility, litigation route.
Mediation replaces the adversarial system with a problem solving approach to deciding who gets what.
A trained mediator facilitates negotiations. Education, not argument, is the focus. The mediator can be anyone acceptable to both parties as fair and impartial - a lawyer, social worker or accountant, for example. Costs vary depending on the length and complexity of the mediation but often agreements can be reached after four to six one-hour sessions. Private practice mediators usually charge their professional services rate but various government and non-profit organizations offer programs through local family courts using salaried or volunteer mediators.