Advocating the Advantages of Mediation

As a mediation advocate, I was pleased to see an article in the newest issue of "Conflict Resolution Quarterly". Lorig Charkoudian, Deborah Thompson Eisenberg and Jamie L. Walter reported a very complete study comparing mediation and litigation in civil cases in Baltimore City and Montgomery County, MD. Participants in the study were a diverse group of 387 people ranging in age from 17 to 90 years-old and consisted of approximately equal number of women and men. Cases included disagreements over contracts, landlord-tenant issues and tort disputes.

In the short term, those individuals who agreed to mediate rather than have their cases heard by a judge were more likely to report having an improved attitude toward the other party in the dispute, a greater sense of empowerment in the process, greater responsibility for the dispute, and greater satisfaction with the judicial system in general.  

In the long term, those individuals who agreed to mediate reported an improved relationship with and attitude to the other party, greater satisfaction with the outcome and with the judicial system in general. And more importantly, cases that settled in mediation were less likely to return to court for any enforcement action within a year.

I and many others for years have advocated the advantages of mediation. This study supports those claims. Court and community-based mediation services serve our society well.  And those individuals who are trained in mediation use those skills in family and social settings also contribute in positive ways to society.

In 2011, the American Bar Association declared the third week of October as “ABA Mediation Week” in recognition that there are multiple paths to dispute resolution. Adversarial litigation is not appropriate for all disputes, nor is mediation.  Particularly in cases where there is an existing relationship between parties who desire to maintain a connection. In my opinion, mediation is the more appropriate dispute resolution process.