Sometimes there is an issue on which certain stakeholders are not going to easily come to an agreement. If there is a strong public participation process (see Public Participation) these types of major disputes might be made apparent early. If that is the case, then a process of mediation can be initiated before an intractable or highly political conflict arises. Sometimes these disputes do not appear until the public hearing or later in the process. If this is the case, the situation may still be a candidate for mediation but is also more likely to become litigious.
Mediation is a formal dispute resolution process conducted by trained mediators – often from the local Bar Association or from an organization such as a community dispute resolution program of your state’s court administrative office, the American Arbitration Association [1], or the Association for Conflict Resolution [2]. An example of one mediator’s services can be found at: [3].
Many times mediation is an attractive alternative to going to court over a land-use or planning dispute. This is mainly because mediation is much less costly than a court case. Further, the range of possible resolutions that result in both parties being happier with the outcome is much greater than a judge’s imposed legal solution. Graphically, the community’s choice between mediation and court can be shown as follows:
A formal mediation process follows a structured process. The first step is to request mediation. The second step is the appointment of the mediator. Third, the mediator will make initial contacts between the parties involved. Next, the first meeting is set up by the mediator if they deem it appropriate for the parties to converse. The parties agree on preliminary exchange of documents, if any.
Two Possible Paths: Court or Mediation.
Sixth, the first and subsequent meetings are held. At these meetings the parties agree on ground rules of the process, gather information and identify issues, explore the interests of the parties, develop options for settlement and evaluate those options. Finally, the mediation concludes when a settlement is agreed upon by both parties.
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- Kurt H. Schindler, AICP, Regional Land Use Educator
- Michigan State University Extension
