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NEWTON MEDIATION, LLC
Choosing resolution over litigation.
M E D I A T I O N B A S I C S
You or your business find yourself in a dispute, possibly a lawsuit. You know the process will take time, cost a small fortune for "legal bills," and involve other opportunity costs. It may even take an emotional toll on everyone affected. Mediation may be the solution.
​Mediation a voluntary, confidential, less expensive, and much quicker alternative to dispute resolution. The mediation process allows a neutral, independent person, to assist the parties in facilitating communication between them in order to help them resolve their difficulties. The Mediator is the person -- usually chosen jointly by the parties, sometimes nominated by a court -- who assists the parties to reach a mutually acceptable agreement to resolve their dispute.
Mediation is usually a more practical, more flexible, less time-consuming, less resource-draining, and certainly less stressful a method for resolving disputes. Mediation can provide a faster, more effective and cheaper alternative than adjudicative processes, that is, than litigation.
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Furthermore, and importantly, mediation puts the power and authority of dispute resolution in the parties' hands, not in a judge's or jury's hands.
MY ROLE AS MEDIATOR
As a trained mediator, my role is to act as that neutral, never to make decisions for the parties, but to facilitate the dialog that identifies issues beyond or beneath the parties dispute, bring them to the fore, and, ultimately, encourage the discuss that leads to the parties, not me, resolving their dispute with finality.
F A Q​
Where am I located? My home is in Huntsville, Alabama, home to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and hundreds of high tech, biotech, engineering companies. Increasingly, mediation is conducted around the United States and the world via Zoom and other online applications (commonly known as Online Dispute Resolution, or ODR).
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​What are my Credentials? For more than 30 years I have practiced law in the Southeastern United States, primarily in Alabama, where I've been a member of the State Bar since 1990. Having completed more than 60 hours of in-person mediation training, from Birmingham, Alabama, to Dublin, Ireland, I am a Qualified Mediator with the International Mediation Institute, as well as a Rostered Mediator with the Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution. Additionally, over the past 30 years I have served parties as legal counsel in dozens of mediations -- both in person and online. My primary areas of law practice are Employment and Contract Law. I have represented both individuals, small businesses and international companies. I am conversant in Japanese.
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Is mediation expensive? No. Compared to litigation -- defending or pursuing a claim in court -- mediation's cost is negligible, commonly a small fraction of months or years in the court system. Typically, mediation costs are shared between the parties, but -- at their option -- the parties may agree to have one or the other party pay for the mediation or reimburse the other party for their mediation costs. This is entirely up to the parties.
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How does mediation differ from arbitration? In mediation the parties decide their own, mutually agreed-upon solution to a dispute. Similar to court, in arbitration an arbitrator decides who "wins" and who "loses." Thus outcome risk is much higher in both arbitration and litigation than in mediation (in which there is virtually no risk).
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Does mediation ever lock me or my company into an outcome I don't want? No. Also different from litigation or arbitration, if the parties cannot fashion an outcome both can accept, then they can leave the mediation process, or, commonly, take a break from mediation and, if it suits them, return later in the day, week, month or year, and continue. As mediation is voluntary, a party my leave at any time, although a skilled and effective mediator will do their best to encourage the parties to trust the mediation process and persevere. Additionally, and different from court, mediation is strictly confidential.
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How to contact me: You can reach me by the following email or by telephone or text:
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richardrussellnewton@gmail.com (01) 205.356.2498
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