Mediation often solves legal issues out of court
By Pam Reeves

(NOTE: The following article is reprinted courtesy of the Knoxville News-Sentinel.)

Anyone who has ever had the misfortune to be involved in a lawsuit will agree that there are many more pleasant life experiences. Even winners will admit that the process is not a lot of fun.

There are tremendous costs in terms of time, money and stress preparing for trial. When you finally get to trial, you then have the pleasure of putting your fate completely in the hands of an unknown judge or jury - definitely not a fun experience. Yet for many years, this process was the only way to resolve legal problems. Fortunately, there is a new approach to resolving all kinds of legal disputes. From nasty divorces to highly complicated commercial disagreements, lawyers and their clients are beginning to choose mediation even after litigation has begun.

The concept of using mediation took a while to develop in east Tennessee. California and Florida were the states blazing the trail in mediation. For years those states have had great success with mediation.

Federal Magistrate Judge Robert Murrian, from the Eastern District of Tennessee, helped organize a successful civil mediation program in 1994. The Tennessee Supreme Court jumped on the bandwagon in 1995 when it adopted a process allowing trial judges to order parties to mediation. Mediation has now become a very effective tool for litigators and their clients.

What exactly is mediation? Mediation is not a situation where you rent a judge for a day. Mediation is a process where parties to a lawsuit agree on someone to serve as a neutral facilitator for settlement discussions. The court clerks’ offices maintain lists of lawyers who have undergone special training and are approved to serve as mediators.

The mediator meets with all the involved parties and their lawyers and through a series of discussions, tries to help everyone realize the strengths and weaknesses of their respective positions. A mediator can also provide information as to what judges or juries have done in similar cases. This information helps the parties have a better understanding of what might happen in their case. Many times these discussions lead to a resolution of the dispute.

The entire process is completely voluntary. The mediator does not have the ability to rule on any issues or to make any kind of final determination.

What are the advantages to mediation? The most important advantage is the fact that the parties have control over their destiny. The litigants actually help fashion the final decision as opposed to a trial where a judge or jury simply tells the parties what is going to happen.

Mediation also allows everyone to be much more creative. Once the parties begin to think outside the boxes imposed by the rules of evidence and civil procedure, it is amazing at the different results which can be explored.

In effect, mediation allows the parties to have their day in court without the costs and hassles of having a real day in court. Every lawsuit has personal overlays that often prevent parties from being able to objectively review their position. Simply having the opportunity to discuss these feelings before a mediator frequently helps a party see the lawsuit from a different angle. Finally, mediation can help reduce many of the costs associated with a lawsuit.

Mediation will not work all the time, but it does work a huge percentage of the time. If you find yourself in the unfortunate position of being a party to a lawsuit, you might want to seriously consider mediation. For more information about mediation, call the Knoxville Bar Association at 522-6522 or the federal district court clerk’s office at 545-4228.