There is a great body of research documenting the success of mediation in resolving civil and family law disputes in a way that parties find satisfying and cost-effective. The following is a brief summary of just some of this research. A. The Success of Mandatory Civil Mediation in Ontario. 1. Mediation has been mandatory in non-family law cases in Ontario since 1999. A study was done on the success of the project in 2001. It found that four out of ten cases were completely settled at or within seven days of the mediation. 2. A "substantial" number of litigants and their lawyers said that they would use the process again if they had a choice. 3. The experience of the mediator was found to be the single most important factor in determining whether the case settled at mediation or not. 4. More parties and their lawyers agreed than disagreed that "justice was served" by the mediation process, and that the "settlement was fairer" than without mandatory mediation. 5. A majority of the parties gave positive ratings to the mediators'? overall skills in moving them toward settlement and their ability to understand the facts and the law. 6. The main area of weakness that participants reported was in the ability of the mediators to address imbalances of power between the parties. B. The Success of Family Mediation There have been many studies of voluntary and mandatory family mediation in Canada and the United States. The results consistently show that people who mediate are more satisfied with the process and the outcome than those who go to court. Some findings: 1. Participants in a custody mediation survey in Colorado and Delaware reported more satisfaction with the process than those in litigation. They felt it helped them focus better on the needs of their children, was less damaging to their relationship with their former spouse, and provided a better opportunity to express their point of view. The study also found a higher level of compliance with mediated agreements. 2. Another U.S. study found that men were generally more satisfied with the outcome of mediation than men using litigation; they felt their rights were better protected, that concern was shown for them and that they were better able to resolve problems with their former spouse. They also felt that the process had a positive effect on their children, which in turn resulted in a better relationship between the children and their mothers. 3. A 1992 U. S. study found that men and women alike found the mediation process to be fairer, they felt less pressure to agree to things they didn't want, and that their rights were better protected. The parties' reached settlement sooner in mediation than those in litigation. 4. The same study found that women in mediation perceived less intimidation from their spouses and felt they had more control over the process, and over their decisions, than the women in the litigation sample. 5. A 1989 custody mediation study found that men and women were equally satisfied with the process, happier with the custody agreement, and felt that the process better addressed the child's needs. Follow up studies in 1991 showed that the positive effects of mediation can be lasting; the parties felt less tension than the parties who litigated for a full year after the divorce. 6. California studies on mandatory family mediation show that the majority of participants view the experience positively, reach agreement more quickly and comply with the agreement more often. 7. Research shows that the greater exposure parents have to litigation, the more likely they are to make decisions that do not reflect the best interests of their children. Adversarial procedures such as filing affidavits and going to court polarize the parents, diminishing their parenting capacity, and compromising their ability to co-parent. Highly conflicted parent relationships result in resistance to mediation, questionable negotiation strategies, unrealistic custody and access demands and repeated litigation. All of this reduces the ability of the parents to cooperate in the best interests of their children. 8. Client satisfaction with mediation varies inversely with judicial or lawyer control or involvement, with mediation clients in non-court-based mediation with low judicial or lawyer control or involvement reporting higher levels of satisfaction. 9. According to a 1994 Canadian study, voluntary mediation makes a greater contribution towards preventing post-separation violence against women than does lawyer negotiations. The preparation of affidavits was a significant factor in increasing violence against women who were negotiating with lawyers in the first 12 months after separation. 10. In another study, women who had been battered and women who had not been battered reported, in equal proportions, being equally or better able than their partners to stand up for themselves and state their position. Although more men than women used physical violence and psychological abuse against their partners in this study, the study found no connection between these "power imbalances" and the outcome of the mediation. C. Who uses mediation? 1. Canadian and American research shows that mediation clients tend to fit a certain demographic profile. Clients who choose mediation, generally, have higher incomes (both before and after separation), are more educated and have been separated for a shorter time than those who choose to negotiate through lawyers. 2. Men who choose mediation often have higher-status jobs. Women who choose mediation consider it to be less impersonal and often have lawyers who encourage mediation. Demographic research suggests that clients of mediators are about three years younger than lawyer-clients, and more mediation clients have children. 3. Disputes brought to mediation are no less intense than those brought to lawyers, nor are the parties? relationships any better. However, those in mediation often think their spouse is more honest and fair-minded than those using lawyers, and they have a greater ability to recognize and acknowledge their spouse's positive qualities. Bibliography: 1. Evaluation of the Ontario Mandatory Mediation Program: Executive Summary and Recommendations, Queen's Printer, 2001. 2. Mediation Research by K. Kressel and D. Pruitt, 1989, Jossey-Bass, particularly research by J. Pearson and N. Thoennes; and Mandatory Custody Mediation: The Debate Over its Usefulness Continues, D. Gaschen, 10 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol., 569 (1995). 3. See Gaschen article, above. 4. Gaschen. 5. Gaschen. 6. Gaschen. 7. Parenting After Divorce: Using Research to Inform Decision-Making About Children, Rhonda Freeman, 15 Can. J. Fam. L 79-129 (1998) 8. Mediating and Negotiating Marital Conflicts, Desmond Ellis and Noreen Stuckless, Sage Publications, 1996, p. 104. 9. Ellis and Stuckless, p. 62 10. Ellis and Stuckless, p. 79. Who uses mediation? See "Divorce Mediation: Characteristics of Clients and Outcomes" by Joan Kelly and Lynn Gigy, in Mediation Research, by K. Kressel and D. Pruitt, 1989, Jossey-Bass. Also see "Divorce Mediation: A Decade of Research" by Jessica Pearson and Nancy Thoennes in the same book. And see Ellis and Stuckless, p. 27, 103, 136.