Mediation Overview

WHAT IS MEDIATION? Mediation is facilitated negotiation with a professional who has no stake (neither gains nor looses) in the outcome of the agreements. Mediators are neutral. Choose a mediator from CoMA's Panel of attorney and industry experts. Colorado Mediators & Arbitrators offers a reasonably priced, easy to understand process.

MEDIATOR’S ROLE: Mediators generate options for settlement, negotiate between the parties, facilitate clear communication between participants, and assist in writing document that details agreements gained in the process.

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING: The document that results from mediation is called a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Either the mediator or the attorneys attending mediation may draft the language of the MOU so that it is signed by the parties and suitable to file with the court clerk. The agreement is binding when the judge or magistrate enters the Memorandum of Understanding as an order.

VOLUNTARY: Agreements that result from mediation are voluntary; however the attempt to mediate as a first step toward settlement can be mandatory if a contract requires that the parties mediate or the court orders mediation prior to hearing or trial.

Mediators have no authority to compel parties to settle a dispute or to come to agreement on terms of settlement.

ATTORNEY'S OR LAWYER'S ROLE IN MEDIATION: Parties have the right to be represented in mediation by an attorney. If the parties attend mediation Pro Se (unrepresented), CoMA's mediators are encouraged to include a provision in the MOU that allows for legal review of the agreement within a specified period of time. If, after legal review, an attorney advises a party to mediation against a provision included in the memorandum, that provision may be revamped in mediation session according to the legal review paragraph. This provision protects both the parties' legal interests and the process.

Although not a comprehensive list, CoMA focuses on the following general areas of dispute resolution:

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