Mediation: Flexible, Effective and Nuanced

Our legal system developed as method of dispute resolution.  Parties in conflict who could not resolve their issues would take their conflict to the courts; marshaling their evidence and turning to a judge or jury to tell them who was right and who was wrong and how things should be fixed based on what the laws – our way of defining what is right and wrong – required.

As a method of dispute resolution, of fixing problems, the legal system is effective, but not the most flexible.  In order for parties to utilize the legal system, they must cram their problems in to a very specific framework in order to obtain “justice” in the form of a judicial decision or jury verdict.  Not only must the problems be presented in a specific way based on what the courts require and how the laws are written, the solutions are also similarly specific and limited.  This is why you see so many workplace disputes crammed into employment discrimination or wrongful termination suits, even though the issues at play do not exactly fit within these parameters.

A more flexible and nuanced approach to dispute resolution would be more useful, and this is exactly what mediation promises.  Because mediation is a process outside of litigation within the court system, it can be tailored to suit the needs of particular parties with a particular dispute.  Mediation is not a rigid system of determining right versus wrong; rather, in the hands of a skilled mediator, it can be a fluid process that acknowledges nuance while focusing on resolution.  It can empower parties to think more broadly about what the issues actually are, and broadens the options for finding solutions and righting perceived wrongs.

Perhaps even more importantly, mediation can broaden the possibilities of what justice looks like.  Often times, parties turn towards the traditional legal system in order to “have their day in court” in order to seek justice for wrongs.  But after the several years and great expense of money and resources that litigation requires, parties are often surprised that the outcome does not feel like justice to them.  

Mediation offers an opportunity to cut to the chase.  By giving parties an opportunity to think about what justice would look like to them without the procedural difficulties or limitations provided by existing legal frameworks, a trained mediator can help parties craft solutions that are meaningful.  Justice can take many forms, and a mediator helps the parties appreciate that, all while helping them arrive at a resolution to their conflict.  And all at a fraction of the time, money and energy required by litigation.