There are more possible scenarios for business disputes to arise than imaginable.  For every one, however, one of the first decisions prior to entering litigation must be mediation or arbitration.  The emotional and financial cost of entering a courtroom along with the often risky choice of leaving the outcome up to a judge and/or jury, and not in the hands of disputants to control the settlement, cannot be overstated.

Northwestern University’s Professor of Law and mediation research and education expert Stephen B. Goldberg is credited with determining that 80% of all mediations result in resolution.  That level of success, along with the availability of highly trained and qualified mediation experts in nearly every community with knowledge and experience in resolving disputes of virtually every possible nature and subject begs consideration.  It is my sincere hope that in the years to come more and more disputes can be resolved in mediation’s confidential setting, which is inclusive, more economical, typically far less protracted and laborious, and most likely to produce a win-win for both parties with the help of a neutral third-party mediator.

The attached article from Harvard’s Law School Program on Mediation, entitled Mediation Secrets for Better Business Negotiations is a wonderful introduction to mediation as a source of successful resolutions for business disputes.