As a mediator, helping parties navigate discussions toward settlement involves creating an adaptive process that supports that agenda.
The use of shuttle mediation comes with benefits and some possible pitfalls! It is up to a mediator to determine when (timing and circumstances) to deploy shuttle mediation.
In part 1 of this two-part series, we first explore The Benefits:
Shuttle mediation can allow parties to speak candidly and privately about the issues and their concerns without posturing or feeling judged or under the microscope of the other party and their lawyer (if lawyer-assisted mediation). It is often in shuttle sessions that parties’ underlying interests are uncovered because the threat of being misjudged, misunderstood, or criticized is removed. When parties focus on their underlying concerns rather than taking intractable positions, creative solutions are borne.
I often observe that parties appear to be more of their authentic selves when they are in a room (zoom or otherwise) with just the mediator. They likely feel safer (emotionally) to propose resolutions and are not rushed to provide immediate responses as would be the case if all parties and mediators are in the same room.
From a mediator’s perspective, private shuttle sessions are perhaps the safest zones in which to exact some reality-checking, which, as we know, often supports a solution-oriented agenda.
One of the greatest advantages of shuttle mediation is that it helps to reduce emotional tension between the parties. It is a given that cooler heads collaborate more productively.
Another benefit of shuttle mediation is that agreements that are concluded through shuttle mediation, lend themselves to being more sustainable because the parties are given the space, time, and privacy to craft their resolutions, so they tend to take ownership of the agreements reached in mediation.
The post Shuttle Mediation: Some Benefits and Pitfalls (Part 1: The Benefits) appeared first on Riverdale Mediation Services.