How Mediation Can Help Resolve Your Business Dispute

Pursuing a lawsuit can be extremely costly, complicated, and time-consuming. When your business is at stake, an alternative like mediation provides a less expensive, efficient, and low-profile way to resolve disputes. 

While mediation seems to be a more civilized way of dealing with business disputes, some people are still reluctant to use this method because it is unstructured; thus, they are unsure what to expect. However, with the right mediation attorney, the mediation process can provide a much better result than traditional litigation. 

What Is Mediation?

Mediation is a procedure used to resolve disagreements between disputing parties, facilitated by a skilled, neutral third person, otherwise known as a mediator. It is an efficient and cost-effective process of addressing disputes where conflicting parties work together to reach an agreement.

Unlike litigation, which features a system of rules and limitations, mediation lets the involved parties stay in control of the problem-solving process, helping them to attain a win-win solution. In addition, mediation is an informal process and does not involve court appearances, high costs, a long wait, or intensive document filings.

Mediation Vs. Arbitration

Like mediation, arbitration uses an arbitrator (an impartial third person) to settle disagreements between disputing parties without going to court. In arbitration, an arbitrator serves as a private judge, evaluating evidence and making a binding decision on the conflict. The arbitration process is much more similar to litigation, where the judge decides the case's outcome, except that it happens out of the courtroom.

The major difference between arbitration and mediation is that arbitrators control the arbitration's process and result. In contrast, the conflicting parties stay in control of the process and outcome of mediation.

Most business disagreements will make mediation compulsory or recommend the process as a first course of action. The disagreement is then brought under arbitration if a solution is not reached within a specified period, usually within two or three months. Arbitration can also become an option if a party refuses to participate in mediation.

How Can Mediation Benefit You?

Choosing mediation over costly litigation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) methods can benefit you in many ways:

• Help fix broken business relationships
• Access to private sessions
• Satisfactory outcome
• Cost-effective
• Confidential and discrete 

Contact a Waxahachie Business Law Mediation Attorney

If you are involved in a business disagreement that you believe can be settled through mediation, get in touch with a Waxahachie business law mediation attorney for help.

Foster Massengill has many years of experience addressing the complexities of different business dispute resolution processes, including mediation. Call us at (972) 878-9105 to discuss your options with JD Foster.