Giggles 'n More

Article by Craid Simons

For disputes that need to be settled, the parties usually go to a mediator. Mediation, therefore, is a process there is an involvement of a third party, in this case the mediator that aims to provide to resolve the conflict between two or more parties. However depending on the parties involved, there are different kinds of mediation that a mediator usually uses to resolve a certain conflict. Here are the types of mediation commonly used by mediators of today. The main difference between each type is the amount of control given to the parties involved.Evaluative mediation does not go for the interest of the parties involved but focuses instead on their legal rights. The role of the mediator is basically to hear the different parties’ view on the disputes and tries to fill in the shoe of a judge in a court. He then makes a decision based on what a judge would give in a court trial. A lot of mediators prefer using this method because focusing on legal rights ensures fairness between the parties involve and the terms of the settlement is based on a certain standard. However, the mediators in these cases usually have to be experts in the law and in most cases attorneys are chosen to be become mediators. The mediator will evaluate whether or not the parties should go to court to further evaluate it or just leave it as is because it’s going to be costly.Facilitative mediation focuses on the parties involved and the mediator will just oversee that the process is smooth and fair to both parties at all points of the process. The mediator on this case is not involved in the outcome rather he researches on some points presented and decides whether or not the underlying motivation is fair to both parties. In facilitative mediation, the mediator oversees the process of settlement while allowing the parties involved in solving the issue by themselves.Transformative mediation is just like facilitative mediation wherein the focus is on the parties involved. Basically, the entire process is agreed by the parties including the possible outcome. Unlike the facilitative mediation, the mediator can provide inputs along the process so that the other party will see the other party differently and will recognize the other parties’ opinion, views and interests. Through this “transformation” the process will eventually settle the dispute as the parties involved slowly repair their broken relationship. Because of the nature of transformative mediation, this is usually used on disputes involving personal relationships. In this mediation, the mediator merely guides both parties rather than overpowering the parties involved.Disputes that need to be settled usually happen because of different reasons. The mediator must be able to see beyond the dispute and determine what the real cause of the dispute is. This is important because the mediator will then know what type of mediation to use that can solve the dispute quickly, make the parties involved happy at the end of the process, and possibly patch up whatever relationships that have been broken because of the disputes.