Arbitration and Mediation
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Dispute Resolution
In the field to resolving legal controversies, mediation is an informal method of Dispute Resolution, in which a neutral third party, the mediator, attempts to assist the parties in finding resolution to their problem through the mediation process. Although mediation has no legal standing per se, agreements between the parties can (usually with assistance from legal counsel) be committed to writing and signed, thus rendering a legally binding contract in some jurisdiction specified therein.
Mediation differs from most other conflict resolution processes by virtue of its simplicity, and the clarity of its rules. It is employed at all scales from petty civil disputes to global peace talks. It is thus difficult to characterize it independently of these scales or specific jurisdictions - where 'Mediation' may in fact be formally defined and may in fact require specific licenses. There are more specific processes (such as Peace Process or Binding Arbitration or Mindful Mediation) referred to directly in the text.
Competence of a Mediator
There are numerous schools of thought relative to identifying the 'competence' of a mediator. Where mediators are retained by parties to provide an evaluation of the relative strengths and weaknesses of the parties, subject matter expertise of the issues in dispute is a primary aspect in determining 'competence'.
Where mediators are expected to be process experts only (i.e., having been employed to use their skills to work through the mediation process without offering evaluations as to the parties' claims) competence is usually demonstrated by the ability to remain neutral and to move parties though various impasse points in a dispute. International professional organizations continue to debate what 'competency' means. Current information can be obtained from professional associations such as the Association for Conflict Resolution.
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