Mediation is a private, informal dispute resolution process in which a neutral person, the mediator, helps parties reach an agreement through negotiation. The mediator has no power to impose a decision on the parties. The mediator helps the parties identify interests that underlie the positions they take. The mediator helps the parties identify options that may meet both parties´ interests. Mediation is the best method of dispute resolution when the parties are motivated to develop their own resolution and they both recognize that they will have a future relationship that they must protect, such as the relationship of parents to their child.

Our clients often find that mediation is the most private, least expensive, and fastest method of dispute resolution. In some communities, attorneys attend mediation sessions and in others they typically do not. In either case, the best mediation occurs when both parties have been prepared by their attorneys.