CHOOSING THE RIGHT MEDIATOR

If you need a mediator to assist in resolving a dispute, here are some quick tips to help you.

1. The dispute may involve a conflict about property, business, or a family issue.
2. Mediation is a staged process and the actual subject matter may vary.
3. The mediator does not represent any of the parties and must always remain neutral and independent.
4. It is helpful if the mediator is familiar with the subject matter of the dispute.
5. Mediation is a common sense based, staged process that looks for the facts, determines the parties needs [ie. financial and psychological] and calculates those needs that the parties share.
6. Once this is done, the mediator  helps the parties search for practical, common sense solutions.
7. Once the parties buy in to these ‘workable solutions’, the mediator prepares a draft agreement.
8. Once this is signed, the process ends.
9. It is then up to the parties to complete their end of the deal.
10. By negotiating their own deal, they avoid continuing conflict and expense and have the satisfaction of knowing that they have resolved their problem without any one else imposing a solution on them.