What is Mediation?
 MEDIATION is a creative problem solving technique which allows participants to come to fully informed, voluntary agreements to resolve their disputes without going to court.
MEDIATED agreements are legally binding and enforceable.
MEDIATION is performed in a private and confidential setting where the participants are in total control.
MEDIATION is less expensive, less time consuming and less stressful than a lawsuit or divorce battle.
Why does Mediation Work so Well?
MEDIATION is all about communication. Almost always communication between spouses has broken down long before a divorce or child custody proceeding is started. The mediators work face to face with both parties to develop and structure a positive method of communication.
THE MEDIATORS are neutral and as such they do not take sides nor do they make decisions for the parties. Rather the mediators strive to create positive and structured commun-ication between the parties which empowers them to make the difficult decisions crucial to resolving a divorce or custody dispute rather than turning those decisions over to third parties, who know little about them or their children, as often occurs in the court system. The number of sessions needed to reach agreement depends on the complexity of the issues and the parties’ ability to work cooperatively toward solutions.
Mediation Preserves Important Relationships
One of the major problems with using lawyers and the courts to resolve legal disputes is that they usually destroy the relationship between the parties. In law school students are taught the "adversarial system of justice". The adversarial system pits one party against the other in a winner takes all battle.
In divorce and family disputes the adversarial system pits one parent against the other in a contest over who wins or loses the children and property.
Mediation is not a contest; rather mediation is a cooperative decision making process which allows parents to continue to make all the decisions that affect their children. During mediation parents work to establish a “parenting plan” which meets the needs of the children and both parents. During mediation neither parent loses custody of their children nor is either parent relegated to the role of visiting parent.
In business mediation a business and a vendor or customer who have worked well together profitably in the past can solve a particular dispute cooperatively and thereafter continue to do business together.
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