Use Mediation To Resolve Disputes

It is a known fact that conflicts arise each day in families, tribes, organisations, communities and nations resulting from differences in interests, preferences, motives and needs. Unresolved differences between people often lead to disagreements and eventually violence or destruction of lives and properties. In this article, mediation is discussed as one of the best dispute resolution processes which Christian believers must use.

God is not unaware of disputes in human societies as born again Christians who are indwelled by the Holy Spirit of God and are expected to live a life of love are also surprisingly confronted with the same challenge. Jesus Christ does not want conflicts to escalate so He commands their swift resolution. In a parable, Jesus Christ drew attention to the need for disputing parties to resolve their differences outside of the court.“As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the officer put you in prison” (Luke 12:58).

You can appreciate the fact that disputes should not be left unresolved. Various processes including litigation may be used to achieve reconciliation. In litigation, procedure and decision are governed, restricted, and controlled by the provisions of the relevant statues. In this process, a learned judge is empowered by the law to hear the disputants represented by their attorneys to ensure legal settlement of dispute which is binding on all parties.

Arbitration may be another best option in resolving conflicts as a neutral person hears the case of both parties and makes a binding award. But mediation is proven to be a best approach in resolving disputes today. In the biblical parable above, Jesus Christ seems to point to mediation as a way for the parties in conflict to resolve their disagreement. Jesus Christ Himself is a mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5); by His mediation, rebellious man through faith is reconciled to God thereby restoring a love relationship between them.

Clearly, the Bible supports mediation so Christians should use it in resolving conflicts with others. In using mediation to resolve disagreements, the mediator does not pronounce judgment. Mediation may have its own weaknesses as no process can claim to be faultless.

However, mediation is considered the most appropriate conflict resolution process especially in a situation where disputants find themselves in a hurting stalemate. A stalemate means deadlock or impasse, a situation where both parties realize that they have no way of escape except to escalate the conflict.

“The rise in mediation services over the last two decades has generally occurred in the context of offering disputing parties an alternative to traditional use of lawyers and the courts. The proponents of mediation have argued that it provides superior outcomes because it is based on a model of cooperative conflict, rather than the win-lose orientation of the adversarial legal system, and because it involves the parties directly and actively in searching for solutions to their differences rather than imposing a solution on them.
‘This intensive participation has been found to lead to psychological commitment to whatever agreements are reached, as well as to agreements that are enduring because they well reflect the needs and circumstances of the disputants” (Kressel Kenneth).

“Statistics suggest that cases settle at mediation greatly. For cases that voluntarily go to mediation, upward 70-80 per cent of settle. Even for mediations that are mandatory, where disputants are required to mediate as part of the litigation process, more than 40 per cent of cases settle at mediation or within 10 days of the mediation.

Mediations are almost always completed in a day, often in half a day, as compared with years it can take to resolve a case at trial from the time of the Particulars of Claim to the time of decision by judge. Statistics also suggest that cases that go to mediation, settle sooner than cases that do not go to mediation, even where the mediation is mandatory” (Allan Stitt).

A number of proven factors buttress the fact that mediation is worthwhile, considering various observations made regarding what may be described as its unique characteristics. First of all, it must be pointed out that modern mediation is directed at resolving conflict between parties by exposing their specific interests and finding common ground.

The discovery of this common ground helps the disputants in reaching a common agreement or settlement. But how can the parties’ underlying interests be uncovered? To do this requires the analysis of the conflict, using various methods including the conflict onion analysis.

As noted earlier, there is a need for mediation because it has been found to be efficacious in resolving conflicts in the modern society for various reasons. Mediators and researchers attest to the usefulness of mediation compared with other processes.

However, most of these reasons are not necessarily always communicated by mediators, judges or lawyers; they are personal testimonies and observations made by the disputants themselves after they are assisted to satisfactorily resolve their own conflicts. Firstly, it has been observed that the cost of mediation is relatively cheaper compared with the other conflict resolution processes. Disputants usually share the fees charged by the mediator.

To be continued…

By James Quansah