Today I served as a Mediator for a case that prima facie seemed pretty straightforward, based on the pleadings I reviewed prior to the mediation session.

However, one thing your learn quickly in mediation is that nothing is as simple as it seems at first glance.

One party had an attorney and other did not (that is, was pro se).  The initial sense was that the pro se was at a major disadvantage.  But in this case, the pro  se had all her facts organized, seemed to have a good negotiating strategy and even said “no deal” at one point and looked like she was going to walk out, relenting only after I asked her to not quit at that stage but stay on and continue with the mediation.

From my perspective, it was clear to me from the outset that both parties were keen on reaching a settlement and neither gave me the impression that he/she was there just to kill time at mediation and go on to court.  For me, that is the only signal I need to boost my confidence that a path could be found to reach an agreement, if one tried hard enough and looked at all angles.

With respect to my approach, since both parties (and especially the pro se) appeared amenable to suggestions, I played the “evaluative mediator” rather than the “facilitative mediator”, a role I prefer because it allows the mediation to move forward more efficiently and not get into dead-ends the parties might end up in, if left essentially to their own devices.

Bottom line – the mediation that commenced at 9:00 am and what I thought could be concluded before lunch time, finally ended close to 5:00 pm, when I got the signatures of all the parties on the Mediated Settlement Agreement.

And I walked out with a great feeling of exhiliration, that I had pulled the parties out of a messy and expensive legal process, an emotion which was bolstered from the positive feedback (see link) I received from the attorney and both parties.