What is Mediation?
Mediation is an act of intercession between parties to bring about a settlement or resolve issues and differences. Usually it involves an impartial person or group of persons to intervene in a particular situation that needs to be settled. The one who supposedly intervenes is called the mediator and he must be impartial to either parties. The point of the matter is to come up with a settlement or possible solution to a particular issue or concern.

Much of the cases that require some form of mediation are civil in nature. Disputes or problems may arise between family members, office mates, tenants and landlords, neighbors, churchgoers, and many other parts of the community. It is also not necessary for the issues and concerns to have legal basis to warranty a mediation process. A simple misunderstanding may need some intervention from somebody who can see the problem in the “bigger picture”.

A simple dispute like the one between family members may need some intervention to come up with a solution to a particular problem. Typical in families, there may be money issues that cause some family members to quarrel among themselves. Usually these issues are settled internally. But for those that seem not easy to resolve, some people outside of the family may intervene to save the family from further division. Friends or neighbors may act as mediators and will hope to help the family in dispute find ways to come up with a resolution to the existing problem.

Mediation is not an easy task though. Before anything can be done, feuding parties must submit to the mediation process voluntarily. All persons involved must also follow certain rules like confidentiality and impartiality.

Various legal battles are initially sent to a mediation process before actual filing of cases. The basic intention is to try to have the parties settle the issue in civil ways before elevating it to the courts.