Our founding partner, Lloyd Hoffer, offers his services as a mediator in addition to his continuing practice in civil litigation.
Lloyd commenced offering mediation services after 34 years of experience as counsel, successfully settling case after case in mediation. He is well positioned to apply his experience in the role of mediator to assist others in bringing their own cases to successful settlement.
What Is Mediation?
Mediation is typically a non-binding, confidential, and “without prejudice” (meaning the discussions that take place may not subsequently be used in court) process where the parties to a dispute attempt to negotiate a resolution with the assistance of a neutral third party. The parties can enter into such a process voluntarily at any time, prior to or during the conduct of a lawsuit. In the province of Ontario, a mediation can also be required to take place by the court. In Toronto, in civil matters, the court typically requires that mediation take place prior to allowing a trial to proceed.
Is Mediation Cost Effective?
Are there other advantages to mediation?
An additional advantage is that in most contexts, the parties can choose their mediator, and the style of mediation. For example, a mediator may be asked to neutrally evaluate the strength of the parties’ respective positions as an aid to determining an appropriate settlement. In other cases, the mediator’s role can be much more directed toward assisting the parties to communicate effectively to find common ground where they may be unable to do so directly.
Can a mediator impose a settlement?
The mediator has no power to make orders or impose any resolution of a case or dispute. Thus any resolution at a mediation has to be the result of agreement amongst the parties – achieved with the assistance of the mediator, but not imposed by the mediator.
For information about retaining Lloyd as a mediator, contact Lloyd.
Key Contacts
We are Hoffer Adler LLP. Lawyers Focused on the Needs of Their Clients.