If you have an attorney, hopefully,  your attorney has told you what to expect in mediation. If you do not have an attorney or if your attorney has not talked to you about mediation, this blog post is for you:

1. Mediation is Confidential

   • What does that mean? It means that everything discussed in mediation is confidential. It cannot be used in Court. Offers in Mediation cannot be presented to the Court if an agreement is not reached. Nothing learned in Mediation that you did not already know can be used in Court. 
   • Why is it confidential? It encourages open communication with the mediator to help resolve the case. Without confidentiality people would be guarded which would prevent reaching an agreement.

2. Separation

   • In my mediations I keep the parties in separate rooms. This may seem strange, however, this encourages each person to speak openly and honestly with me. It eliminates worry about the other person hearing or the other person’s feelings.

3. Agreement

   • The goal of mediation is to help the parties reach an agreement. If an agreement is reached then the mediator will draft up the general terms of the agreement and have everyone review and sign it. If it is signed then the terms of the agreement are binding on all parties to the agreement and cannot be revoked.
   • Part of reaching an agreement is compromise. If both sides do not compromise then an agreement cannot be reached. This means you likely will not get your “best day in Court” and you likely will not get your “worst day in Court”, but rather somewhere in between.

4. Timing

   • Mediation sessions are generally 4, 6, or 8 hours. When the mediation time is complete the mediator will either keep you in mediation to try to reach an agreement, declare an impasse, or recess to come back.
   • An impasse is only an option when the mediator truly believes an agreement will never be reached.
   • A recess will happen when the mediator either cannot continue the mediation at that time due to time constraints or when the mediator believes a short break will help the parties.
   • Keeping you over time happens in cases where the parties are close to an agreement

I hope this blog post has given you some information about what to expect in mediation to help you prepare.