What is Mediation?
Mediation is a voluntary, non-judgmental, and confidential dispute resolution process in which neutral trained mediators help people have difficult conversations and make plans about their conflicts. Mediation lets people speak for themselves and make their own decisions. Anyone can use mediation.
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If you would like to make use of the service, please click any of the "Request Mediation" buttons.
Mediation is an informal process done in a neutral and private setting with two professionally trained volunteer mediators. They will:
- Listen as you explain the issues of the conflict
- Ask questions to help you and the other person clarify and understand the issues
- Guide you through a process to develop solutions
- Assist you in writing up an agreement that works for everyone involved.
Neutral
The mediator will not take sides, assess blame, or tell you what to do. The mediator will not force you to make a decision.
Confidential
The mediation process is confidential, except in cases of child abuse, elder abuse, and credible threats of violence. The mediators will not give information shared in the mediation process with anyone outside the process.
Voluntary
Mediation is voluntary. Either participant can end the mediation process at any time and no one can be forced to agree to anything that they do not want.
The agreement is a summary of the solutions you and the other person make to solve your dispute. The agreement may be a legally binding document if you wish. To prepare for mediation, think about what you need and what you are willing to do to achieve it.
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What is Community Mediation?
Baltimore Community Mediation Center employs the Ten-Point model of Community Mediation.
There are ten goals of the community mediation model.
- Train community members who reflect the community's diversity with regard to age, race, gender, ethnicity, income and education to serve as volunteer mediators
- Provide mediation services at no cost or on a sliding scale
- Hold mediations in neighborhoods where disputes occur
- Schedule mediations at a time and place convenient to the participants
- Encourage early use of mediation to prevent violence or to reduce the need for court intervention, as well as provide mediation at any stage in a dispute
- Mediate community-based disputes that come from referral sources including self-referrals, police, courts, community organizations, civic groups, religious institutions, government agencies and others
- Educate community members about conflict resolution and mediation
- Maintain high quality mediators by providing intensive, skills-based training, apprenticeships, continuing education and ongoing evaluation of volunteer mediators
- Work with the community in governing community mediation programs in a manner that is based on collaborative problem solving among staff, volunteers and community members
- Provide mediation, education, and potentially other conflict resolution processes to community members who reflect the community's diversity with regard to age, race, gender, ethnicity, income, education, and geographic location
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General Mediation Service Information