Mediation
Mediation in Missouri
Mediation works. As an attorney, I have witnessed mediation resolve seemingly intractable litigation with the parties miles apart.
Why Does Mediation Work?
Cost
Mediation is cost efficient and saves parties and attorneys time and money. Most cases will settle in one mediation session, while a jury trial requires an average of 3.5 days of actual trial time and an additional 10 days of preparation time. Add to this post trial motions and appeals and the costs of a trial can easily add up to staggering amounts. At the end of one day of mediation, a case is settled.
Resolution
At the end of a successful day of mediation a case is over. The parties will have resolved their differences once and for all. The resolution of the case will be set out in a set of documents leaving nothing to be argued for the future. Since the parties agree to a solution, no one feels short changed
Furthermore, mediation allows parties to settle their disputes with remedies that might not be available at the courthouse.
Future Business
It is not unusual for a business to find itself in a lawsuit with a longtime vendor or customer over an unpaid account receivable, a warranty problem or a dispute over terms and conditions of a sale. Once a lawsuit is instituted not only do the parties incur the expense of prosecuting and defending the lawsuit but an ongoing mutually beneficial business relationship often ends. More often than not by mediating a dispute, preexisting business relationships can be repaired and restored.
Personal Satisfaction
A party to a lawsuit who has a personal hand in bringing about a resolution of a dispute and a lawsuit will always feel vindicated at the end of a successful mediation. The court process does not offer the face to face meeting between parties and the free exchange of thoughts that a mediation offers. Parties who are allowed to work out their own resolutions to disputes can retain a deeper sense of satisfaction as to the outcome than if the lawsuit was decided by a judge or jury.
Managing Risk
Lawsuits are all about risk. Parties are confronted with the risk of winning and losing and the collateral effects of an adverse outcome. The perfect set of facts is rare and every jury trial ultimately depends upon a jury’s opinion of a party’s credibility. Every trial lawyer has successfully tried cases that should have been lost and has lost cases that should have been won. At mediation, the risks of trial are thoroughly discussed and probable outcomes are examined. Through this continuing examination of risk the parties become willing and do reach a compromise of their positions and take control and manage their own risk.
Confidentiality
Trials are held in public, with all of the testimony and the ultimate outcome also public. Mediations are held in private, the conversations during a mediation are private, and the outcome of the mediation can be made private. Mediation is held in private and is confidential. Disclosure of what happens at a mediation is controlled by the parties to the mediation. Unlike a court proceeding mediation records are not open to public review.
Scheduling
Mediations are scheduled by the parties. Although a court may order mediation to take place by a certain date, the parties are free to schedule the actual mediation date and time to fit their own calendars.
Speed
J.P. Clubb is available to schedule mediations as early as a day, a week or a month in advance. Unlike a trial, the case can be mediated when everyone agrees to meet. In some cases, when an injunction is sought for example, a mediation can be scheduled on very short notice. A mediation can be scheduled in advance of the filing of a lawsuit or the day before a trial is scheduled to begin.