Michael Gregory, ASA, CVA, MBA is a Qualified Mediator with the Minnesota Supreme Court and an expert in conflict resolution.

 

Mike saves clients time, money and energy to focus on other matters and enhance productivity by bringing closure to difficult situations.

No two client sessions are the same. He works with you to listen to your concerns and to help you resolve your issue or develop unique training to fit your needs. Mike's style is high energy, high content, and high interaction so that you have a solution that really works. You'll leave mediation knowing what to do and how to do it, and are provided with the information, soft skills, and innovative strategies needed to address your concerns.

  • As a qualified mediator with the Minnesota Supreme Court, he offers transformative and facilitative client-based mediation between parties.
  • As a facilitator often on very complex issues.
  • As a negotiator, mediator, or facilitator, he provides services to allow clients to save significant time, resources, money and emotional toil to work towards an interest based agreement. With closure clients can move on.

 

Dispute Resolution
Dispute resolution is a process to resolve a conflict, a dispute, or a claim between parties. The process can be an alternative to going to court, a process in parallel with potential litigation, or litigation. Typically, alternative dispute resolution takes the approach of either arbitration or mediation. This commentary will explore mediation and conflict resolution, alternative dispute resolution, and conflict resolution at work.

Mediation and Conflict Resolution
In mediation the parties make the decisions. The mediator is neutral. With the aid of a highly skilled mediator the parties explore the facts, issues, emotion around the issues, and interests. This allows the parties to work towards a resolution that each can live with going forward.

In this instance the mediator may work with the parties all in one location, may caucus periodically with one party at various times during the session, may go back and forth between the parties, or some hybrid using these techniques. Mediation can be conducted in person or virtually.  Mediation is voluntary in nature but may still result in a binding agreement if the parties so choose. The process is confidential.

Alternative Dispute Resolution
Alternative dispute resolution besides mediation may include arbitration or litigation.

In arbitration, the arbitrator acts like a judge and makes the decision on the case. After the arbitrator listens to the parties and reviews all of the evidence a binding decision is made. Many times, the decision is confidential and cannot be appealed. These determinations are set at the beginning of an arbitration.

Both mediation and arbitration tend be far more inexpensive than litigation and in general are confidential.

In litigation a tryer of fact as either a judge or jury decides in the more familiar trial setting. In this setting the lawyers are the key players to work with the court to determine what can or cannot be entered into as evidence with the process of discovery prior to the trial. This process is generally far more expensive and time consuming. A significant percentage of litigation cases are settled prior to the actual trial. Except in unusual situations, the proceedings and evidence are all part of the public record.

Conflict Resolution at Work
At work disputes may arise around personalities, work assignments, management and employees, equal employment opportunity issues, or in many other arenas. Once again alternative dispute resolution enters the picture. Applying mediation techniques, allowing parties to be heard, and communication are three essential elements associated with diffusing a situation and working to resolve issues at work.

What Should I Do?
Deciding which of the approaches may work best in a given situation is highly dependent of the facts and the parties involved. As an experienced mediator, Michael Gregory focuses on facilitative mediation using transformative techniques. Parties appreciate the opportunity to present their position, facts, feelings, and interests to work towards a resolution. Mediation saves mental and physical toil, time, and money. It is a viable alternative with issues such as valuation, intellectual property, contentious divorce, multiparty, complex highly technical, or significant tax issues.