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Making Peace

If you haven't yet considered mediation as a way to resolve business disputes, here's why you should.

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This story appears in the January 2004 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »

That our system is rife with problems is not news. Withfew exceptions, litigation takes too long, costs too much, andoften leaves even the winners feeling like victims- just some ofthe many reasons why deal-makers should favor overlitigation.

Think of mediation as with a moderator. The mediator(a neutral third party) listens, questions, clarifies, sets groundrules and suggests alternatives, all to help the parties work outtheir own solution. A mediator has no authority to bind theparties, unlike an arbitrator, a judge or a jury. Jane Guerin, anattorney specializing in mediation and a UCLA law lecturer, highlyrecommends mediation. "Compared to litigation andarbitration," she says, "the parties have greater controlover how their dispute is resolved."

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