Friday, October 16, 2015

Some of the concrete benefits of mediation over trials


Here are some interesting facts collected by Mediate BC, the professional body which administers the civil and family rosters of professional mediators:

1.   Mediate BC roster mediators (family and civil) conducted nearly 12,000 mediations in 2013.

2.   68 per cent of civil mediations resolved all issues between the parties, and a further 25 per cent of civil mediations did not resolve all issues but helped the parties make progress towards a resolution.  In other words, in 93 per cent of civil mediations, the mediation resulted in a complete or a partial settlement of the dispute.

3.   The average total mediation fees for a civil mediation were $1,566.  The average legal fees for a litigation dispute up to and including a two-day civil trial were $21,452 per party, or $42,904 for two parties.  In other words, if a civil mediation is conducted before lawyers are retained, the cost of the mediation is a small fraction of the costs of litigation.

4.   Cases which included a mediation resolved on average about five months sooner than those which did not.

5.   93 per cent of participants in civil mediations had an average-or-higher satisfaction rate with the process.

Mediation is not the perfect answer in every case, but the numbers show that it's usually a cost-effective way to conclude a dispute successfully.

Andrew.

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