What are the different types of mediation?

On Behalf of | Jul 22, 2021 | mediation | 0 comments

If you find yourself in the middle of a divorce, you may be on the lookout for anything to help get through the process smoothly. An investment in mediation might be the answer.

But mediation is not a one-size-fits-all affair. Depending on your case, there are various types of mediation according to Harvard Law.

Mediation at a glance

At its core, the mediation process seeks to find the most common ground for a settlement to occur. Most people in any court proceeding, let alone divorce, come in wanting what is fair — and often disagree on what fair even constitutes.

Most forms of mediation, such as facilitative, court-mandated and transformative mediation, all try to get the whole story and help find an accord. Your mediator may try to help you and your ex-spouse see things from the other’s point of view. While many of these are hands-off processes designed to help parties reach a consensus on their own, there are other types like evaluative mediations where the mediators make actionable recommendations.

Med-arb versus arb-med

These are two types of mediation that seek to establish a schedule of sorts for the mediation process. In med-arb, you and other parties agree that the result is binding. If mediation does not succeed, the mediator may act as arbitrator and resolve the situation.

In arb-med, things flip. The mediator, acting as arbitrator, makes an award judgment before the parties mediate. That way the mediator bases their award on the original information as opposed to any mediation that happens in between.

Every divorce has unique details about it and when it comes to mediation or arbitration, it is important you and your ex-spouse find the style of arbitration that fits your case best.