Is Mediation the same as Litigation?

No. In litigation the final event (the court trial) there is a neutral third person (the Judge). Upon hearing all the evidence that he/she has permitted to be admissible the Judge decides the truth and allocates who was at fault. Once the parties enter into the litigation process they lose control of the process. They can not back out of this process easily unless they get agreement from the other party, and if they could agree they would most probably not be there in the first place. The other two events leading up to involve the pleadings back and forth to frame the dispute and discovery to ferret out the facts supporting each disputant’s claims. The truth the Judge establishes may be a function of the skill of the lawyers representing the parties. The uncertainty of this process can sometimes necessitate settlement of the dispute at the eleventh hour on the court house steps. Unfortunately, the settlement if this happens occurs only after substantial costs have already been incurred and may not be what any of the parties' desire. back