Approximately 85% of conflicts that employ mediation end with a positive resolution, that being that both parties have come to agreement around a particular conflict. Why the great success rate? There are a number of factors that play a roll in this, they are;

 Predisposition

 Both parties are predisposed to settle out of court. This doesn’t necessarily mean the parties actually desire mediation but see it as the lesser of two evils. Maybe there are kids involved and the parties are motivated to protect them or maybe it’s a financial decision. It could be a time factor or a host of other reasons that have nothing to do with genuinely desiring to sit down and work things out. The point being that there is motivation on both sides of the conflict for resolution outside of a court of law.

 Environment

A court of law has everything to do with the law and very little to do with what may or may not be the right or best way to resolve a conflict. A court, for the most part, seeks only to uphold the law which in many cases has little or nothing to do with justice or the feelings or consequences of any decision it makes. The law is the very blunt instrument.

 Mediation, while it must account for the law, allows for people to work out their conflicts themselves with the help of a trained professional. The power remains with the parties involve and not the courts.

 Being Heard

A person’s chance of being “heard” is often an essential ingredient of why mediation is successful because it meets the very primal need of the parties in conflict to say what they want to say and be understood without having necessarily to “prove” or “defend” how they feel or see matters concerning the conflict.

 Healthier Emotional Outcomes / Closure For Both Parties.

 One major reason that mediation works is that that which was agreed to seldom falls apart and ends up in court down the road. Why? Besides the obvious reason, that being, that the parties worked out the agreement themselves is that there was a sense of closer.

 There are few issues left unresolved in the mediation process. Courts can bring legal closer to a conflict even with appeals etc. but usually do not bring emotional closer which can affect the lives of those concerned for years after the court has made its decision. Mediation can help bring emotional closure and reduce or eliminate the bitterness that can result from court proceedings and unresolved issues.