The mediator does not decide how the dispute should be resolved, as a judge or arbitrator would, but instead guides the parties through a process in which they discuss the issues, generate options for resolving the dispute, and design their agreement. There are a number of different mediation models that are used in Ohio and around the world, but they all share some common characteristics. The mediator summarizes the information shared by each party and assists the parties in defining the issues in dispute. The mediator assists the parties in generating possible options for a resolution of the dispute, selecting a mutually agreeable solution, and finally, in drafting an agreement that they can carry out successfully. Mediations can result in a resolution reached in an hour or two or can involve multiple sessions and occur over a period of several months.
Some mediators use a co-mediation model in which two mediators work together to assist the parties.
They may caucus with the parties before the mediation, at the beginning of the session, or during the mediation at any time. Others use a caucus only when they have exhausted other methods of helping parties who are at an impasse in their problem-solving. Qualifications refer to the amount and type of training, education and experience possessed by a mediator. Ohio mediators often attend trainings that meet some pre-set qualifications set by either a professional organization, local rule, or, in the case of parenting mediations in juvenile or domestic relations court, qualifications set forth by the Supreme Court of Ohio. In most states, a person can offer private mediation services without taking a class, passing a test or having a special license or certification.