As soon as parties in dispute are in a position to talk about a resolution of their dispute or to attempt to negotiate, they are ready to mediate. There are very few disputes that are not amenable to mediation. Some conflicts may be inappropriate to mediate as for example:

• Where a definitive ruling on a matter of law is required
• Where the visibility of litigation is important as a deterrent (as for example, to protect a trademark or copyright
• Where injunctive relief is needed
• Where some benefit can be derived by delay
• Where there is no genuine desire to settle

Mediation can take place even before lawyers are involved, or before proceedings are issued. Most LADR mediators are ‘licensed’ under the Public Access scheme, and are authorised to take instructions and cases directly from members of the public. If on the other hand proceedings have been issued and litigation is underway, the court will stay the proceedings to enable parties to attempt ADR.

Timing of Mediation There may be situations where mediation is appropriate, but it may not be the appropriate time if one or other of the parties does not have sufficient information on vital issues in the dispute for example:-

• Values of the subject matter of the dispute
• Medical reports
• Technical reports
• Safety records
• Design histories

So you can mediate if you or your clients have:

• a straightforward case - you simply need assistance in opening up lines of communication with the other side so as to help resolve the dispute quickly.
• a complex case - which would benefit from issues being resolved, if not the entirety of the dispute.
• a strong case - and you need a good mediator to ‘knock some sense’ into the other side.
• a weak case - and you need a good mediator to ‘broker a deal’ so as to extract the maximum benefit from the situation.