Litigation can often be lengthy and expensive. Traditionally each side retains their own firm of solicitors, barristers and experts and after the exchange of pleadings and discovery, the case is fixed for trial, at which point the costs will have increased significantly for each side. Moreover, at trial there are always a number of possible outcomes including:
Adjournment
Settlement ‘at the door of court’
The case proceeds and the Judge decides in favour of one party, with costs normally ‘following the event’ such that the unsuccessful party has to pay the successful parties legal costs as well as their own.
There is an alternative, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) or Mediation, is encouraged by the NI Court. A mediator is a neutral person, jointly appointed by the parties, who will seek to help the parties and their advisors reach a resolution of the dispute. The mediation is confidential and without prejudice, and can be arranged at any stage of a dispute.
At Worthingtons, we believe that Mediation can be very effective and if successful at an early stage, will undoubtedly avoid the delay and costs associated with traditional adversarial court based litigation.
If you would like advice on mediation and dispute resolution, contact the litigation team today.
028 9043 4015 
