Mediation offers creatives ways to solve your financial problems. In today's tough economic times when legal remedies are often lacking, supervised mediation may be the best solution.

 

When money is tight, the resulting stress creates personal and business conflicts. When these conflicts arise, people turn to legal solutions and lawsuits. Litigation is expensive and adds even more to the financial stress.

 

Mediation is often overlooked as an option to litigation. For whatever reason (lack of understanding, anger, not knowing how to proceed), mediation is not considered first. I am asking you that you consider this option and contact me about it. 

 

In many civil disputes, our adversarial legal system does not offer satisfactory results. Litigation costs are high, the courts are overcrowded, and judgments often seem unjust. I believe mediation offers you better solutions for the following seven reasons.

MEDIATION SAVES TIME AND MONEY: Most mediation sessions are concluded in one day instead of months, or even years, for the typical lawsuit. With these time savings you also save costs.

MEDIATION IS NEUTRAL: You and the other parties have an equal say in the process. You determine the solutions, not a judge or lawyer or mediator. The process is fair and without prejudice.

MEDIATION IS CONFIDENTIAL: Information disclosed in mediation is for settlement purposes only and cannot be used against you at a later time. In fact, all participants in the mediation sign a confidentiality agreement. This makes it safe to propose new ideas that can lead to new solutions without fear.

Slow me down, Lord. Ease the pounding of my heart by the quieting of my mind. Steady my hurried pace with a vision of the eternal reach of time.

Give me, amidst the confusion of my day, the calmness of my nerves and muscles with the music of the singing streams that live in my memory.

Help me to know the magic restoring power of sleep.

Teach me the art of taking minute vacations…of slowing down to look at a flower, to chat with a friend, to pat a dog, to read a few lines from a good book.

Remind me each day of the fable of the hare and the tortoise that I may know that the race is not always to the swift; that there is more to life than increasing its speed.

Abraham Lincoln wrote a law lecture around the year 1850. In it he stated:

"Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often a real loser... in fees, expenses, and waste of time. As a peacemaker the lawyer has a superior opportunity of being a good man...

Never stir up litigation, A worse man can scarcely be found than one who does this. Who can be more nearly a fiend than he who habitually overhauls the register of deeds in search of defects in titles, whereon to stir up strife, and put money in his pocket?"

Wise words for today's litigious American society.

Value is a difficult concept to explain in one sentence. It takes on different meanings in different areas. What is of value in a legal sense is totally different from the mathematical or personal meaning. In the legal field it is a concept closely related to that of consideration--it is the price one pays for the price of another person's promise.

At common law, certain transferrable obligations are enforceable if the person acquires them for value. The value can be on of many types: money, a promise, or even an act by a person. At the heart of many legal disputes is the definition of value. How we define it and how we claim it can help us find solutions to our problems.

Most people, when confronted with discourse with others, retain an attorney to solve the problem. This approach is effective, but can be very costly and time consuming. There is an alternative to litigation that often works faster and maintains business relationships. That alternative is mediation.

Mediation is the last thing on most people's minds when they are angry with another person. They want to be "protected" and get "justice". To do this, they hire an attorney skilled in the art of legal battle and turn their lives and money over to him or her. Sometimes this is required and is the best approach. In today's legal system, this is the first option. However, an option that is growing in popularity is mediation and arbitration.

Getting divorced? The process can be expensive and time consuming. Going to court and the use of lawyers in contested cases can run the costs into the tens-of-thousands of dollars and take years out of your life. You can save money and time with an uncontested divorce and the use of mediation.

An uncontested divorce is one where you and your spouse agree on all essential issues (property division, alimony, child support) in advance of court proceedings. If possible, you and your spouse discuss settlement terms without the assistance of lawyers. Often times, lawyers only fan the flames during divorces because of their zealous representation of their clients. By keeping the combative nature of lawyers out of it, you and your spouse can maintain control of the settlement terms and pace. Fewer lawyers equal less stress.

Mediation is a process in which a neutral person helps two or more people achieve a voluntary agreement over a disputed matter. This process can equitably resolve differences that would usually be litigated with a lawsuit. In the long run, mediation costs less than a lawsuit and avoids the uncertainty of judicial outcome.

 

In fact, the mediation process can be applied to just about any type of dispute. The process allows you to openly explore many options that might not be available through the courts. Moreover, you and the other party have an equal say in the process and decide settlement terms, not the mediator. With mediation, you, not the lawyers or judges, can decide your fate.

 

"Traditional litigation is a mistake that must be corrected... For some disputes trials will be the only means, but for many claims trials by adversarial contest must in time go the way of the ancient trial by battle and blood. Our system is too costly, too painful, too destructive, and too inefficient for really civilized people."

 

Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, (Ret.) U.S. Supreme Court.

 

 

We are in the midst of a litigation crisis. The high cost and long delays associated with the trial of civil matters often make litigation an impractical method of resolving disputes. It is not uncommon for the attorney's fees, expert witness fees, jury fees, court reporter fees and other related costs to exceed the amount in dispute. Parties increasingly find that they are spending more to litigate than the cost to settle the matter.