Mediation is a process through which parties to a dispute can reach a mutually satisfactory resolution with the help of a third-party mediator.  Scott works with the parties to understand their needs and the issues underlying the dispute.  He then works with each side to find ways for the parties to make proposals that address these needs and issues.

No.  Mediation is a voluntary process where the parties have the ability to decide whether to settle and if so, on what terms.

There are a number of advantages of resolving the dispute through mediation rather than at trial. First, there are significant cost in both money and executive time associated with taking a case to trial.  Those resources can be used to advance the business in the marketplace free from the burdens of the litigation.  Second, the parties are able to control the final resolution of the dispute rather than placing that decision in the hands of a jury or judge who has not expertise in your business or industry.   This power of control allows the parties to resolve the dispute on terms that a court trial is not able to provide as a remedy.

Only a small percentage of the cases filed on Court actually go to trial.  This is because, at the end of the day, the parties determined that reaching an agreed-upon resolution is a better result than the risks and costs associated with submitting the dispute to the uncertainties of a trial.