How Should Your Mediator be Oriented?

If you answered this question by saying “North by Northwest”, you, while incorrect, are a good Hitchcock fan. But for mediations, a better answer would be Broad by Evaluative, or Narrow by Facilitative.

Most mediators gravitate towards being facilitative (facilitating a resolution by encouraging the parties to reach their own voluntary resolution) or evaluative (making recommendations and suggestions, and expressing their own opinions to the parties), but few have the dexterity to do both — particularly during the same mediation.

Law professor Leonard Riskin developed a visual grid to demonstrate this, coupled with the notion of defining a problem narrowly or broadly. Looking at Riskin’s grid, a practitioner can get a sense of just want kind of mediator is needed for a particular dispute or parties.

Before selecting your next mediator, ask yourself what kind of mediator your client needs as well a what kind of mediator the adverse party needs. Then be sure the mediator you hire can adequately address all the issues associated with those needs.