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A Focus on Mediation
by the South East Branch of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators

What is Mediation?

Mediation is where two or more parties in dispute, unable to resolve the dispute by negotiation between themselves, use a third party (the Mediator) to assist and facilitate the parties in their negotiation process, so that they can achieve a compromise that the parties can live with.

The advantages of mediation are;

• It is cheaper than other forms of dispute resolution
• The agreement is the parties own - the mediator is not a judge
• The process is speedy, often taking only a matter of hours
• The process focuses the parties on their real commercial interests
• The parties maintain good relations, which enables trading to continue
• It is a win-win solution that has proven to be 80% successful

The mediation process is;

• Confidential - nothing can be repeated outside of the process
• Entirely without prejudice - the parties lose none of their legal rights
• Under the control of the parties - they can walk away at any time

We would be happy to provide you with an estimated comparison between the costs of a typical litigation, arbitration, adjudication and mediation.