Safe Harbor Christian Counseling
MEDIATION SERVICES
Safe Harbor Christian Counseling & MANA Group, LLC work in a partnership to provide mediation services. To schedule mediation, call Safe Harbor Christian Counseling at 1-800-305-2089 and talk to Ruth or Lisa. They will have one of the mediators call you to discuss the process in more detail and answer any questions that you may have.
What is Mediation?
Mediation Staff
Core Values of Mediation
What is the Mediation Process?
How the Process Will Look
What are the Benefits of Mediation?
What is the Economic Savings of Mediation v. Litigation?
Mediation Cancellation Policy
What is Mediation?
Mediation is a conflict resolution process in which a neutral third party facilitates communication between two or more parties in an effort to foster collaboration towards an agreement.
Mediation Staff
Core Values of Mediation
- Neutrality
- Confidentiality
- Voluntary
What is the Mediation Process?
A four-part process that will allow participants to work through challenges that has caused a fracture in the relationship between the parties.
- Information Sharing
- Topics
- Brainstorming
- Agreement Writing
How the Process Will Look
- The mediation session is scheduled for two hours.
- We use a co-mediation model in which the participants meet with a male and female team of mediators.
- The mediation is conducted in a location that is mutually accessible and acceptable to the parties.
- The mediators will ask open-ended questions to assist the participants in their communication and information exchange.
- The mediators will not provide advice or make judgment on what is right or wrong.
What are the Benefits of Mediation?
Economical Decisions
Mediation is generally less expensive when contrasted to the expense of litigation or other forms of fighting.
Rapid Settlements
When parties want to get on with business or their lives, mediation may be desirable as a means of producing rapid results.
Mutually Satisfactory Outcomes
Parties are generally more satisfied with solutions that have been mutually agreed upon, as opposed to solutions that are imposed by a third party decision-maker.
High Rate of Compliance
Parties who have reached their own agreement in mediation are also generally more likely to follow through and comply with its terms than those whose resolution has been imposed by a third party decision-maker.
Comprehensive and Customized Agreements
Parties can tailor their settlement to their particular situation.
Greater Degree of Control and Predictability of Outcome
Parties who negotiate their own settlements have more control over the outcome of their dispute.
Personal Empowerment
Mediation provides a forum for learning about and exercising personal power or influence.
Preservation of an Ongoing Relationship or Termination of a Relationship in a More Amicable Way
A mediated settlement that addresses all parties' interests can often preserve a working relationship in ways that would not be possible in a win/lose decision-making procedure. Mediation can also make the termination of a relationship more amicable.
Decisions that Hold Up Over Time
Mediated settlements tend to hold up over time, and if a later dispute results, the parties are more likely to utilize a cooperative forum of problem-solving to resolve their differences than to pursue an adversarial approach.
What is the Economic Savings of Mediation v. Litigation?
Beyond the emotional cost to relationships, there's the pure economic cost that comes into play when making a decision to mediate as opposed to litigate. The dollar amounts below illustrate the general picture of the economic savings of mediation.
Initial Consultation
Discovery
Experts before trial
Depositions before trial
Trial preparation
Settlement discussions
Trial (three days)
Post trial (no appeal)
Cost of disruption to company
Total Resolution Costs
Source: Glenn, 1993, p. 37
$3,500
$25,000
$5,000
$8,000
$10,000
$5,000
$15,000
$2,500
$40,000
$114,000
$0
$3,500
$1,000
$3,000
$0
$0
$5,000
$0
$5,000
$17,500
(NOTE: the average hourly rate for a Maryland divorce attorney is $200 with an average case cost of $3,500 – www.divorcesupport.com)
Mediation Cancellation Policy
Pre-Mediation Cancellation
If at anytime during the pre-mediation process, should either party decide to forego mediation, the canceling party will pay for half the cost of a two (2) hour session equal to and not exceeding Three-Hundred Dollars ($300). These monies will be paid to Safe Harbor Christian Counseling.
Day-Of Mediation Cancellation Policy
If at anytime during the day of the scheduled mediation, should either party decide to forego mediation, the canceling party will pay for half the cost of a two (2) hour session equal to and not exceeding Three-Hundred Dollars ($300). These monies will be paid to Safe Harbor Christian Counseling.
Mediation Cancellation – During Process Policy
If at any time during the actual mediation, should one or both parties decide to end the mediation process, billing for a full mediation session will be billed to both parties. This dollar amount will equal to and not exceed for either party, Three-Hundred Dollars per party. A full mediation session is equal to, two (2) hours billed at $150 per party per hour. Each party is responsible for $300 for a full mediation session.
Post Mediation Session Policy
If at anytime during the mediation session, the parties decide to schedule another session and during the interim one or both parties decides to forego the scheduled mediation refer to the Pre-Mediation Cancellation Policy.