Originally from Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation

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A mediator is required to be impartial and to honor the principle of self determination. Yet mediation parties look to mediators to provide their views on settlement offers or demands and may even seek what would be called “advice.”

Mediators are allowed to provide information that is a product of the mediator’s training or experience. But can the mediator offer an evaluation? Or framed differently, when does “evaluation” cross an ethical line? That is the question explored below.