If a court sends me to mediation, does that make it different?

When a court sends you to mediation, usually you should make a good faith effort to try to work out your differences during the mediation process. While the mediation is still not going to be legally binding, and in most cases you can stop it at any time and go back to court, it is still in your best interests to try to cooperate as much as possible. After all, if the judge sent you to mediation and then you refuse to even try, that’s not going to earn you much favor with the person who ultimately does get to make decisions about your case.

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If a court sends me to mediation, do I have to agree to settle my case?

Mediation is a non-binding and generally voluntary form of alternative dispute resolution. If a court sends you to mediation, it can require that you mediate in good faith. However, they cannot and will not require that you settle your case. Mediation is different from arbitration in that with arbitration, you must submit your dispute to an arbitrator and are bound by the decision, whereas the mediation process does not bind you to any resolution.

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