Mediation Vs. Going To Trial

Let’s face it, going to court isn’t fun for anyone except perhaps for the winning attorney or party. In many cases, a lot of stress as well as time and money could be saved by simply finding a way to settle out of court.

Typically a court case will take a considerable amount of time in appearing in court, listening to motions, settlement conferences, partial judgments and trial dates. This isn’t a small or inexpensive task. Each side must have witnesses and prepare for the trial. All depositions must be gathered and in some cases an expert must be located and called in as well. The costs can quickly become astronomical.

Once this is done there could be another few months while your Divorce Lawyer Ogden is preparing for the trial and waiting for a date that is available in the court. By this time, you’re spending a lot of money. Thankfully, there is a better way. Regardless of the situation, whether it be divorce, or some other legal matter, it can be done much more quickly and efficiently.

One way that people settle out of court is called mediation. In mediation a disinterested third party is brought in to help the parties come to an agreement regarding the court case at hand. Here is how it works.

Mediation

It’s easy to get caught up in “he said she said” and in “that’s mine not yours” when the truth is, it could all be settled by simply sitting down and working out the fine details of the specific situation at hand.

A mediator is trained in listening to both sides of the situation and recommending a way that both parties can come away with something in the specific situation at hand. Because the mediator doesn’t have a vested interest in the situation they are much more likely to look at the situation and see both sides of the problem much more clearly.

The mediator will help the parties to explore all facets of the situation and find a resolution that both parties can agree upon. The mediator can facilitate a frank discussion between both parties as well as their attorney’s in an effort to come to a satisfactory agreement in the situation.

This can save both parties a lot of time and money. It can save on court costs, attorney fees and even on time lost from work.

The final decision is left up to both parties and the only responsibility of the mediator is to guide the parties in the direction of a resolution.

All mediation is confidential and the information disclosed during the mediation isn’t able to be used against either party in court. The whole purpose of confidentiality is that the parties must feel safe and secure to openly discuss the case without any ramifications if another dispute comes to light.

There are varying forms of mediation and most will have specific phases of the process. There will be joint sessions and there may also be sessions with others present like experts or psychologists who are needed to help present specific views of a situation.

Frequently only a few sessions are required to come to a speedy resolution of the situation. Then the information can be presented to the judge and the agreements signed off. That’s it, it’s over.

Going To Trial

Going to trial however will be much more expensive. Both parties must hire an attorney and the costs can quickly mount.

Each party will have their Divorce Attorney Ogden speak on their behalf and agreements may take much longer to reach as sometimes attorney’s can be difficult to get a hold of.

To further complicate matters, there may be additional fees involved as well as time missed from work that can quickly add up to more money lost.

Parties may not get anything they want or they may find that they only get part of what they want. There can be a long legal battle and the time between court dates can vary depending upon the court availability as well as witness availability.

This entire process can be long and drawn out and it’s not just financially draining, it’s also emotionally draining. Over the course of time it can really weigh on a person and begin to affect their health.

The biggest difference is that parties going to trial aren’t trying to work things out between them in any fashion. Both are out to get what they feel they deserve and often this winds up to tip the scales in one’s favor over another.

Trials are costly, time consuming and can really drain assets and emotions. Opting for a mediation over a trial can save time, money, emotional energy and help the person to move on with their life in a much more timely fashion.

When considering mediation vs going to trial most parties will opt for the mediation in order to achieve more of what they are seeking.