Johnston Lawrence

Mediation and negotiation

We see mediation as one of a range of processes – a handy tool in our kit – that we can use to resolve disputes. There’s nothing revolutionary about it. In one form or another, mediation has been around for years. But some people – even some lawyers – still think it’s mysterious, and that it’s all done with smoke and mirrors. Not so.

Mediation is simply one way of negotiating a settlement of a dispute. What distinguishes it is that a neutral person – the mediator – is put in charge of the process. It’s a bit like having a meeting chaired by someone independent. Sure, it needs some special skills to help you through, and that’s where we come in.

As an alternative to going to court, mediation:

• Is private – there’s no publicity
• Is confidential
• Gives you, not the judge, control of the outcome
• Is usually much faster than the court
• Lets you have your say about everything, not just what the lawyers want to hear
• Could cost you a lot less

We often assist our clients in mediations, and we’ve been doing that for a long time. Of course, we don’t guarantee you a result – in the end, that’s up to you – but we’re very happy with our record of getting good settlements for our clients in nearly all the mediations we’ve done.

One of our partners, Roger Chapman, has been a trained mediator for over 20 years and is regarded as one of New Zealand’s most experienced mediators.

And if for some reason mediation isn’t the right choice, our toolkit still has plenty of other tools we can use to help you. We’re pretty enthusiastic about them, so we’re only too happy to explain them to you.

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