The day of Mediation can be daunting for a client, and for many clients it will be their first experience of Mediation. As solicitors, it is our role to minimise the stress of Mediation for our clients and to achieve their desired outcome, however, this is not always possible.
>On the day of Mediation, it is important to arrive at the venue early. This will eliminate the possibility of being late, which is stressful, and gives the wider team more time with the client, and to run through everything before the Mediation starts.
Mediations usually start with a joint session between both parties and the Mediator. The parties and their legal representatives will introduce themselves and then set out their respective position. At Barton Legal, we like our clients to prepare a short opening statement, setting out how the dispute has impacted their lives and what they are seeking from the day. This is a powerful tactic, and allows the client to directly address their counterpart in a calm and controlled environment.
After the opening session, the Mediator will speak privately with each party. Parties will discuss the opening session, and put their arguments across to the Mediator in private and confidentially. One of the benefits of Mediation, is that you can instruct the Mediator to withhold certain information from the other side, so you can speak freely with the Mediator without having to worry about information being relayed.
The Mediator will then begin working between the two rooms, acting as messenger. It is important to note that the Mediator must remain neutral and independent through the Mediation.
It is common for negotiations to start slowly, as the parties get a feel for each other and can often have their guards up at the beginning of the day. Negotiations typically speed up throughout the day, as focus turns to specific points in the dispute. We often refer to the later stages of a Mediation as 'ping pong' negotiations due to their quick, back and forth nature.
During negotiations it is important to stay firm in your position, whilst being flexible. We have seen many Mediations, where parties think the flexibility should be one sided, which very rarely leads to a settlement. It is important to keep sight of the fact the Mediation is a form of Alternative Dispute Resolution which aims to avoid trial, so parties will very rarely receive the same sums that they would at trial, but the matter should be resolved much earlier in the process, and at a lower cost and with much less stress.
If a settlement is reached, then this will be detailed in a settlement agreement to be signed by both parties.
For more information on how to prepare for a Mediation, read our article here.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
