FindLaw | Find a Lawyer. Find Answers.
Are you a legal Professional?
Mediation FAQ
How long does mediation take?
Typical mediation cases, such as consumer claims, small business disputes, or auto accident claims, are usually resolved after a half day or, at most, a full day of mediation. Cases with multiple parties often last longer: Add at least an hour of mediation time for each additional party. Major business disputes -- those involving lots of money, complex contracts, or ending a partnership -- may last several days or more.
Private divorce mediation, where a couple aims to settle all the issues in their divorce -- property division, alimony, child custody, visitation, and support -- generally requires half a dozen or more mediation sessions spread over several weeks or months.
How is mediation different from arbitration?
A mediator normally has no authority to render a decision. It's up to the parties themselves -- with the mediator's help -- to work informally toward their own agreement. An arbitrator, on the other hand, conducts a contested hearing between the parties and then, acting as a judge, rends a legally binding decision. Arbitration resembles a court proceeding: Each side calls witnesses, presents evidence, and makes arguments. Although arbitration has traditionally been used to resolve labor and commercial disputes, it is growing in popularity as a quicker and less expensive alternative to going to court.
Arbitration has its critics, however. There has been a lot of controversy lately about big businesses requiring their customers or employees to arbitrate disputes with them, rather than taking those disputes to court. Often, these arbitrations are conducted under rules that favor businesses -- for example, damages are limited, time limits for filing a claim are shortened, or information sharing is cut off. Some courts have ruled that businesses can't require consumers and employees to participate in these one-sided proceedings, although others have ruled differently.
Arbitration and Mediation Resources
Helpful tools and forms available for purchase.Legal Ace.com offers turn key legal documents at affordable prices for business law, incorporations, trademarks, copyrights, wills, divorce and more.
Download more than 50,000 state-specific legal forms. Real estate documents, power of attorney forms, wills, employment contracts, divorce and separation agreements and much more.
Fast and friendly legal document service from LegalZoom, the #1 online legal document service