Eployment Law Indianapolis The DeBrota Law Firm LLC

Employment Dispute Mediation

The DeBrota Law Firm LLC offers pre-litigation employment dispute mediation as an alternative way to effectively resolve employment related conflicts. Amy Ficklin DeBrota has completed forty hours of Indiana Supreme Court approved civil mediation training and is a registered mediator in the state of Indiana. She has participated in many employment dispute mediations, which usually occur after a case has been filed in court and the parties have invested significant time and expense in the process. After experiencing over a decade of these mediations late in the process, Ms.DeBrota decided to offer pre-litigation mediation services as a way for the parties to quickly resolve their differences and "move on" with life or business. Often, both of the parties in pre-litigation mediation participate in the process pro se, or without legal counsel, although the parties may have legal counsel present. Ms. DeBrota also offers mediation services for employment cases which have already progressed to an administrative agency, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or which have been filed in state or federal court.

What Cases Can Be Mediated?

Amy Ficklin DeBrotaMost civil disputes can be mediated, including those which are employment-related. Although there thousands of laws on the books, many disputes simply do not raise a legal claim that you can take to court. Disputes between employees and employers sometimes fall into this category. Fortunately, mediation is available even when courts are not.

Mediation gives the participants an opportunity to raise and discuss any issues they might wish to hash out. Because mediation can handle any number of concerns or issues, it offers a way to discuss and solve the problems underlying a dispute -- and create a truly lasting and final peace. Pre-litigation employment dispute mediation can provide a way to resolve issues the parties might not be able to address in court and allows them the power to determine the outcome themselves. Ms. DeBrota provides pre-litigation employment dispute mediation services to help the parties find a mutually satisfactory resolution to conflicts. Contact us if you are interested in mediating a dispute.

Why Mediation?

Few controversies can cost a business more in time, money and lost opportunity than a dispute with an employee. A single employment dispute can result in the erosion of substantial intangible assets, such as employee morale, good will from customers and colleagues, as well as the monetary costs of legal fees and costs (no matter what the outcome) and a potential jury award. A conflict with a key executive can devastate a well-established company, both organizationally and financially. The task of handling a dispute can distract and disorient an otherwise strong and efficient management team.

From the employee’s perspective, engaging in litigation against a current or former employer can limit the future employment opportunities available. Employees often find litigating employment disputes both emotionally and financially draining. The litigation process can be unsatisfying for many employees, regardless of the outcome of the case because it fails to address many goals employee’s have, such as obtaining a positive or neutral reference for prospective employers, avoiding the stress of confrontation, avoiding disclosure of embarrassing information and obtaining closure regarding an unpleasant situation so the employee can move on to “bigger and better” things. For both sides of the litigation, allowing judge or jury to decide the issues involved in an employment related dispute is a gamble. Employment dispute mediation eliminates or minimizes the disruptions and distractions, and the financial and emotional cost to both businesses and employees.

Companies often refuse employee overtures to informally resolve a dispute, instead opting for litigation to resolve employment disputes, because management does not fully understand the consequences of such litigation on the business at hand. Once begun, parties often become entrenched in their positions and it is difficult, if not impossible to stop the litigation. Each step of the litigation process leads to the next. Some unscrupulous defense counsel discourage a resolution and instead urge a company to keep litigating a case, due to the continued hourly billing opportunity it affords defense counsel. Plaintiff's lawyers sometimes encourage their clients to continue litigation, in the hope that the employer will offer a bigger settlement later in the process. As a result, the parties often find themselves resolving cases at the courthouse door after economic, political and emotional costs have all been spent.

When a terminated or current employee makes a claim against an employer, it is generally in the interest of both parties to attempt to resolve the matter early, before litigation begins, through a procedure called mediation. In mediation, an attorney trained as a mediator, acting in a neutral role, meets with the parties to help them find a resolution to their dispute. The involvement of a mediator greatly increases the chance the dispute will be resolved by helping the parties open communications to focus on their real interests in order to find a resolution that meets the needs of both sides. Mediation is a non-binding process. Neither party is required to accept any recommendation that the mediator might make for settlement. Any settlement and its terms are entirely subject to whatever terms the parties' can agree to include in the agreement. As a rule, the entire process is generally confidential, and often the parties agree that the resolution of the dispute should also be confidential.

Employment law is one of the fastest developing areas of conflict and increasing litigation in the United States. Disputes between a company and its employees can arise in several different contexts. An existing employee may contend that a supervisor harassed them. An employee who was terminated or denied promotion may contend that such decision was motivated by discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age or disability. Lastly, a terminated employee may allege that he or she has been wrongfully terminated and that the termination was unfair or without good cause. Federal and state laws regarding workplace conduct, and court decisions interpreting those laws, are constantly redefining the manner in which a company must relate to its employees and vice versa. Pre-litigation employment dispute mediation provides a cost effective and satisfying way to deal with the evolving law and employer-employee conflicts. Contact Ms. DeBrota if you would like more information about using mediation to resolve an employment dispute.

These articles might help you determine if pre-litigation employment dispute mediation would be a good solution for you:

"Get the Other Side to the Mediation Table"

"Tips for Successful Mediation"

If you are interested in mediating an employment dispute, please complete and submit an employment dispute mediation request form.

"Problems are only opportunities with thorns on them."
Hugh Miller, "Snow on the Wind"

The DeBrota Law Firm LLC, an Indianapolis employment law firm, represents clients and provides consultations throughout Indiana, including all central Indiana counties and the cities of Indianapolis, Bloomington, Elkhart, Franklin, Kokomo, Lafayette, New Albany, Muncie, Terre Haute, Fort Wayne, South Bend, Richmond, Marion and Anderson.
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