Mediation is designed to attempt to avoid the lengthy and costly court process. If you have a Solicitor, they will advise when is best to suggest mediation. Very often, this is before the point of offering a settlement. If you do not have a Solicitor then you can attempt mediation at any time, with both parties agreeing this route, as it is simply a way of resolving the dispute directly between the parties without any court involvement.

The successfulness of Mediation is dependent on how keen the parties are to resolve their dispute without having to go to court. Reasons for this may be to maintain confidentiality, uphold their business reputation or simply save costs. We encourage parties to be open-minded and as positive as possible, and to trust that our Mediators are a neutral party here to empower both parties to take control of their dispute by being problem-solvers, in order to reach a resolution.

We can offer a style of mediation known as ‘Shuttle’ mediation. This enables us to move between the parties, shuttling back and forth, without you having to be in the same room together. This helps us to facilitate you both to identify shared zones of interest in order to identify a possible settlement. Nothing is shared with the other party unless you explicitly ask your mediator to. Whilst it can often make sense to hold a joint meeting at some point during the mediation, we can avoid this if it is a cause of distress.

This varies from dispute to dispute. However we aim to put aside a full day. When we start depends on whether we are offering an online service or whether each party has to travel to a specific location.

Once a settlement is reached, your legal advisors will prepare an agreement which will be signed by all parties. Once signed this agreement is legally enforceable which if not complied with, could lead to further legal action. Whilst your Mediator will ensure that any settlement reached satisfies both parties, the Mediator cannot advise on the legality of the agreement itself.