Originally from Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation

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A February 2008 report of the American Bar Association’s Task Force on Improving the Quality of Mediation confirms what is obvious to all commercial mediation participants: There is “overwhelming support” for the conclusion that lawyers want mediators to provide “analytical input.”

Or, as we more commonly call it, “evaluative mediation.” The marketplace has spoken. [For more on the report, see “ABA Task Force Releases Mediation Recommendations—And Calls for More Research,” 26 Alternatives 79 (April 2008).]

The Task Force’s conclusion allows litigators and mediators to enter into a new discussion about how we can work together to serve clients better. We no longer have to beat the dead horse of the debate between “evaluative” and “facilitative” mediation.