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Mediation is a voluntary process facilitated by a
neutral third-party who guides disputing parties to help them come to a fair and workable agreement that both sides can live
with.
Although that description may be straight forward, it doesn’t reveal the true merits of mediation. Here are what
we consider the top six benefits of mediation:
1. It’s voluntary. That means that you can walk away anytime if you
can’t resolve things. Nothing is binding until you sign it!
2. The mediator is impartial. Although mediators can’t
deny that they have biases just like everyone else, mediators are trained to level the playing field for the parties in order
to balance power struggles between them.
3. It’s YOUR agreement. Since the agreement that is produced in mediation
is not an imposed decision by the courts, parties can be as creative as they wish in constructing the terms of their agreements
(within the law, of course).
4. It’s cheaper than court. Consider attorney fees and court costs and multiply those
times two! Mediation usually costs less than half the expense of litigation.
5. It takes less time. A litigated case
can take years! Mediation can give you flexibility and be completed on your terms…not at the court’s whim!
6. You may
be able to save your relationship! Since mediation gives people a way to resolve their disputes together, opposing parties
often start to envision themselves on the same side of the table, while the problem to resolve is on the other side of the
table. They begin to attack the problem and not each other!
As you can see, mediation is a wonderful alternative to
an IMPOSED decision by the courts. It can be used for any kind of dispute, from divorce to small claims to neighborhood dog
barking.
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