The Mediation Centre

There is an old engineering joke about the proverbial glass. Optimists see the glass as half full; pessimists see the glass as half empty; engineers ask “Who designed that glass?” Reading the articles posted under ‘The Mediation Futures Project’ 1 it is clear that there is little agreement about our future – some of us are optimists and some are pessimists.

The Future of mediation hangs on several factors.  Probably the most important is Trust. If mediation is not widely trusted by users, it has a mediocre future.  This is simply because mediation depends on the parties, who usually do not trust each other, fully trusting the mediator and the mediation process.  Unfortunately, mediation appears to stand some way down the trust stakes.

James D. Whitewater faced life in prison if he was convicted of first-degree murder in a fatal shooting last summer outside a Nampa Walgreens. Co-defendant Joshua Wasserburger could have been sent away for life, too, if convicted of aiding and abetting first-degree murder. The two men's defense attorneys spoke with prosecutors, making a case for reduced charges that would bring shorter sentences. Canyon County prosecutors wouldn't budge. They were headed to trial.

The Detroit bankruptcy, which many feared would drag on for years while the city's citizens suffered, was completely resolved in 16 months on a fully consensual basis. Many have asked how this was achieved and what can be learned from the Detroit experience. Although there are no doubt numerous lessons, we believe that the most significant takeaway is that mediation — the resolution of disputes through confidential negotiations led by a neutral facilitator — can produce faster, more satisfying and less rancorous resolution of disputes, and that such an approach can and should be used in other public policy disputes.

In law, as in life, the world is often a stage, as Shakespeare wrote, with men and women playing, consciously or not, many characters, some more difficult than others. Learning to identify the parts being played, and learning how to deal effectively with the various characters, is always important, but perhaps never more so than in the context of a mediation. In a mediation, success is often determined by how well you can identify the parts being played by the other participants, and how well you can deal with these unique characters.

The mediation confidentiality statutes do not apply to mandatory family law financial disclosures, even if the required documents are exchanged during mediation, the Court of Appeal for this district has ruled. Div. Three Thursday granted a writ of mandate to Gina Lappe, the ex-wife of Beverly Hills physician and medical services entrepreneur Murray Lappe.