Talk to me!

In this age of on line communication, it could be said that the art of conversation is dying if not dead already.  When I'm at home, my children are more likely to text me than talk to me, although that could be because we live in a town house and it's just too much effort to walk down two flights of stairs when they are in the middle of an important on line game.
However, there are times when only talking to someone will work and sometimes it has to be face to face.  There are times when you need to look someone in the eye such as telling them that you love them, or making a confession.  Some things only work in person.
Mediation is much like that.  If you are serious about settling a case, then sitting round a table and thrashing things out is the best way to do it.  Two recent decisions have highlighted the importance of mediation or rather, the consequences of NOT mediating.  Interestingly both cases involved an NHS Trust, and on both occasions, the Trust was found to be at fault for failing to mediate, leading to serious cost consequences for them.  On one occasion, their reason for not mediating was that the parties were too far apart but that's the whole point of mediation – it's an opportunity to try and narrow the gap.  A mediation I did many years ago involved a case that clearly should have settled, but somehow we couldn't get the other side to be reasonable.  It was only when we sat round a table and listened to the Claimant and his personal views on the case (things no doubt that even his own solicitor hadn't fully appreciated), that we understood what the problem was and were able to reach a resolution.  He just needed to talk, and to know that what he was saying had been heard and understood.  
If you need someone to talk to, who will listen to what you have to say and help you through the mediation process, drop me a line at stephanie@kleymansolicitors.com.  I can listen as well as I talk.
Kleyman & Co Solicitors.  The full service law firm.  We're all ears.