How does appellate mediation differ from mediation at the District Court level?
Mediation at the appellate level is not particularly different from mediation at the District Court level. In both instances mediators help parties to explore their interests, think creatively, and develop solutions. The difference is that on appeal, a judge, jury or administrative agency has rendered an appealable decision. Sometimes that decision resolves all of the substantive issues in the case, and sometimes it resolves only some of them (e.g., appeals from preliminary injunctions or decisions about qualified immunity). Either way, the decision, and what is likely to happen to it on appeal, become part of the risk analysis the mediator uses to help the parties negotiate. That said, some cases lend themselves to appellate mediation better than others.
