Real estate companies can, unfortunately, find themselves in the middle of a variety of legal disputes.  Whether these disputes are with tenants, vendors, or strategic partners, having to allocate time and resources to solve these disputes can be stressful, distracting, and detrimental to the bottom line.  Even more problematic is that, due to basic human nature, once a legal dispute is in full bloom, the idea of sitting down and working things out can be the last thing on anyone’s mind.

This can be particularly true when a hotly contested dispute results in one or more parties taking legal action in court.  Often, however, the best and most productive way to proceed may be to actually sit down with a neutral mediator and work through the disputed issues to see if there might not be some common ground upon which the disputed issues can be resolved.  As one of America’s greatest trial lawyers, Abraham Lincoln, is reported to have observed, the result for all involved of trying to come to a mutual resolution of even serious disputes could be a significant savings in legal fees, expenses and wasted time and energy.

“Alternative dispute resolution” is gaining traction among legal professionals.  And, mediation of disputes is simply one kind of alternative dispute resolution.  Simply put, mediation is a process in which a neutral third party facilitates communications between the parties who have a dispute. The benefits of this process can be significant.  Typically, a mediator can assist the parties (and their legal counsel) in identifying various issues and exploring possible solutions to the dispute that the parties can mutually agree on.  To protect the integrity of the process, formal mediation is confidential and any settlement that is reached is completely voluntary.  Indeed, parties who have elected to have their disputes mediated, are completely free to reject or accept any proposed solutions or ideas that the mediator attempts to introduce or explore.

In most mediation proceedings, the parties are able to select their own mediator, if they can agree.  If the parties cannot agree on a mediator, however, the court that has jurisdiction over their dispute usually has the authority to pick a mediator from some kind of approved list.  Mediators can come from a variety of backgrounds, but most people who serve as mediators are typically well-respected lawyers in the local community.  Increasingly, retired judges serve as mediators, which can be very useful to resolving disputes because they can use his or her years of judicial experience to privately resolve a dispute.

Many state and federal courts have instituted formal mediation programs to help encourage and facilitate early settlement of lawsuits.  By most reports, these kinds of programs are having a positive impact on the litigation process and are helping those who find themselves caught up in a legal dispute to resolve them fairly and efficiently.  All of that said, legal dispute and litigation are serious business. Any company involved in a dispute of any kind should involve legal counsel at the earliest juncture possible so that its legal rights can be preserved and a satisfactory resolution be achieved as efficiently as possible.