Civil and Commercial Disputes

Mediation can be an extremely useful mechanism for resolving Civil, Contract and Commercial disputes. Such disputes can vary in range from simple contract disputes to shareholders / partnership disputes in relation to business, disputes in relation to commercial / construction matters.

Unlike Family Law disputes Civil and Commercial Mediation usually involve a caucusing model which involves the Mediator going from one room to the other and discussing the issues with the parties on an individual basis.

The Mediator does not make a determination in relation to the issues but helps, through a series of questions and skill sets the parties to reach their own agreement by establishing clear agendas and issues and trying to go through these issues and agendas with a view to finding areas of mutuality between the parties.

Disputes that end up being determined by a Court can be significantly more expensive and can take a long time to resolve. Mediation saves a significant amount of time, saves a huge amount of time for the people involved in the dispute and also allows the parties to move on with their lives.

The Process

• Once the parties have agreed to attend Mediation the process usually begins with a joint session where the Mediator will explain the process and will ask each party to sign the Mediation Agreement i.e. an agreement which effectively sets out the rules of the Mediation process.
• The Mediator, will then meet with each party and will try to identify the areas of conflict from their perspective. The Mediator will only reveal information which he received from one party to the other party with the specific consent on that party. This is a very important element of the Mediation.
• The Civil / Commercial model will usually attempt to resolve the issues within one day but this may not always be possible.

Venue

• The Mediation will usually take place at a neutral venue to be agreed with the parties.

Who pays for the Mediation?

• The cost of Mediation will usually be paid by both parties and will be confirmed and paid in advance. It is frequently the case in Civil / Commercial Mediation that the parties have their own legal advisors. The parties will be responsible for their own legal costs in that event.

Is it necessary to resolve all issues?

• Very often Mediation will only succeed in resolving some elements of the dispute. If the parties are happy it is possible to sign up an agreement which reflects what the parties have agreed and leave other matters to be resolved by way of a different mechanism.

If you require advice in relation to any of the services listed above or if you wish to receive copies of our client newsletters and / or our business ezines please contact us on 01-2960666 or at info@dillon.ie.