The concept "mediation" comes from English "mediate": to intervene in a dispute to bring about an agreement or reconciliation (Oxford Dictionary)

Business mediation is mediation in disputes in the business world. This may mean a dispute between different companies but it can also mean disputes between companies and private individuals as customers. The concept of business mediation, besides referring to external company disputes, also includes alternative conflict resolution of in-company disputes such as conflicts between employers and employees or conflicts between co-owners.

The spectrum of conflicts resolved with the aid of business mediation lies within the entire range of commercial and/or commercial law disputes.

Besides business mediation there is also, to take an example, family mediation (for conflicts in marriage and the family, in case of divorce and for family law issues), school mediation (mediation of conflicts in schools), environmental mediation (for conflicts in environmental law, in the field of public law) as well as the concept of perpetrator-victim reconciliation which seeks to establish reconciliation and compensation between a perpetrator and the latter's victim in criminal law.

Concrete fields of application for business mediation are, for instance: legal relationships set up for the purpose of cooperation, erection of large plants, extensive real estate asset deals, marketing contracts, supplier contracts, development consortia, relations between co-owners, relations between owners and managing directors, relations between supervisors and employees, change of generations in company management, competition disputes, inheritance disputes, etc

Civil law court proceedings are public proceedings before a public court and, unlike mediation, are not confidential.

In litigation a judge decides the outcome of the legal dispute while in mediation a mediator, jointly selected by the parties in conflict, accompanies negotiations and the parties decide themselves how their conflict can e resolved.

In litigation factual matters relating to law are only clarified with reference to the past in terms that are confrontational and imminent to the system. Besides taking account of legal aspects, mediation considers the commercial and personal interests of the parties that lie behind their disputes and directs its attention to a solution that will hold up in the future.

Litigation is a formal procedure that frequently entails having the conflict terminated with a court judgment based on procedural law considerations that is unsatisfactory to or even contrary to the interests of both parties. Mediation is an informal procedure; it knows no procedural constraints.

In court litigation evidence is taken by investigating factual matters from the past and frequently obtaining decisions with the use of experts. Mediation knows no formal rules of evidence. Experts may be involved at the request of the parties but they do not issue any judgment binding on the parties.

At the end of court litigations, experience shows that frequently the tension between the parties is maintained; with mediation, this tension is eliminated by the solution jointly arrived at. One or both of the parties leave the courtroom as losers; in mediation both parties can only win.

Litigation proceeds according to firmly established principles. Mediation is flexible and allows for inclusion of all negotiating techniques (visualisation, private talks, etc) in negotiations.

Litigation in court normally takes from three to six months. Continuing up through different appeal levels can even keep the struggle going for years. Mediation is on average completed within two to four days of negotiations.

Arbitration is a procedure for settling disputes. As an example, the Bavarian Arbitration Act has for certain types of disputes (such as particular kinds of conflicts between neighbours) introduced the principle that an attempt at arbitration by a publicly appointed arbitration body is a prerequisite for having the dispute taken up by a court. The background to this arrangement is to lessen the case load of courts and bring about an early resolution of the conflict with the aid of some mechanism besides a court. Attorneys and notaries may assume the function of acting as an arbitration body.

All in all, arbitration proceeds according to formal rules and constitutes a commendable way moving conflict resolution out of the courts but one that falls far short of the potential that mediation offers.

An arbitration panel is a private court that takes the place of public courts (examples are the arbitration panels of chambers of industry and commerce).

The EUCON Institute can also be used as an arbitration panel.

Arbitration proceedings can only be initiated on the basis of a legally valid arbitration clause or an arbitration agreement. The procedure may end with an arbitration judgment or an arbitration settlement. The arbitration decision is handed down by the arbitrational judge or judges similar to a court ruling and constitutes a definite end to the legal dispute. The decision is in a manner similar to that of a civil court not brought about by the parties but by outside third parties and is based on a formal procedure subject to procedural constraints.

How do I find a mediator?

If you are involved in a conflict and are considering conflict resolution through mediation then contact the EUCON Institute.

We can recommend mediators suitable for your problem and will provide you access to our mediator pool.

We will explain the mediation procedure to you and the other party and discuss any question you may have about mediation. Should you and the other party decide to go to mediation EUCON will propose three potential mediators. In joint consultation with the other party you can decide on one person who will then be able to quickly initiate and carry out the procedure.

EUCON itself via the EUCON Academy offers high-quality training to become a business mediator and also certifies other suitable training programmes.

Ask us, we will make efforts to propose a suitable advanced training programme for you.