ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the suitability of various dispute resolution processes from the perspective of the parties to the dispute, and then from the public-interest perspective. The initial determination regarding the choice of dispute resolution procedure will be made by each attorney in consultation with his or her client. The most common form of dispute resolution is negotiation. Compared with processes using third parties, negotiation has the advantage of allowing the parties themselves to control the process and the solution. Frequently, a skilled mediator can persuade the parties to put aside their factual dispute while at the same time agreeing on a mutually acceptable resolution of the dispute. Mediation is of great value in such situations. By controlling communications between the parties — keeping them physically apart, if necessary, and acting as a kind of translator—the mediator can literally "separate the people from the problem."
