Multi-party mediation ordinarily refers to many claimants or many defendants, and often both; usually all independently represented. The multi-party mediation presents a unique set of management issues in addition to the special requirements to schedule the multi-party mediation in an appropriate and adequate physical setting. The sheer number of participants in the multi-party mediation may mandate use of a team of mediators under the direction of the principal mediator, each assigned the responsibility to engage in private caucus meetings with parties and counsel.
Construction defect cases often require a multi-party mediation involving several design professionals, the owner, general contractor and all third party subcontractors, most coming to the multi-party mediation with representatives of their respective insurance companies. Class actions often fall into this category, as do highway accidents involving a number of vehicles or a form of mass transit such as a bus carrying many passengers each with an independent claim.
UWWM mediators have decades of experience in managing and hosting multi-party mediations. Our main conference centers in Maitland, Daytona Beach and Birmingham are each equipped with multiple conference rooms and facilities to handle large, multi-party mediations. More importantly, our senior mediation team has the requisite experience built over the years to effectively handle the most vexing multi-party mediation challenge.