| The American legal system is | | | | that it empowers them and allows what |
| overburdened with lawsuits. Paralegals | | | | could be a very complicated litigious |
| spent countless hours doing legal | | | | process to be a lot simpler, more |
| research, drafting documents, and | | | | successful, and less cumbersome. |
| interviewing clients in preparation for | | | | Mediation techniques can be employed to |
| a trial. However, there is an emerging | | | | solve several different types of |
| movement that is challenging how we as a | | | | disputes, including family matters such |
| society handle disputes, and it is | | | | as divorce or child custody, owner |
| formally termed Alternative Dispute | | | | tenant or builder/homeowner problems, |
| Resolution (ADR). One of the most | | | | community disagreements, or disputes in |
| common forms of ADR is mediation, where | | | | the workplace.Mediation can also save |
| a neutral third party, termed a | | | | time and money. For instance, in a |
| mediator, works with both sides of a | | | | divorce/child custody case being settled |
| dispute to have them agree on their own | | | | by litigation, both sides might spend |
| terms, without someone else deciding | | | | thousands of dollars in attorney fees. |
| what is best for them. As more and | | | | It might result in several court |
| more people choose this route over | | | | appearances and numerous phone calls |
| litigation, there is an increasing need | | | | back and forth between their respective |
| for skilled mediators, and paralegals | | | | law firms. In the end, a judge would |
| have a tremendous opportunity to fill | | | | decide the outcome and essentially seal |
| this void by utilizing their analytical | | | | their fate, whether the terms were |
| abilities and undergoing formal training | | | | acceptable to them or not.A similar case |
| in mediation.Why enter the field of | | | | handled through mediation, however, can |
| mediation? First of all, mediation | | | | often be worked out through several |
| works. Given the opportunity and the | | | | sessions with a mediator, at a cost much |
| means to form their own solutions to | | | | more reasonable than if the case were |
| their problems, many disputants find | | | | litigated. |