Mediation in Dispute Cases Helps Avoid Emotional, Financial Toll of Court
SPS Updates
One of the best ways social workers can help clients engaged in a dispute is to minimize through mediation their contact with the legal system, says Michael Beattie, JD, LMSW.
"The adversarial nature of the American legal system results in legal actions that heighten disputes and risk retraumatizing people by making them relive painful events,” Beattie says in an article he authored for the latest NASW Section Connection newsletter for the NASW Specialty Practice Section for Social Work and the Courts.
A study measuring the effects of litigation found that after litigation, plaintiffs were more pessimistic about the future, used poor strategies for protecting their health, and had less empathy, says Beattie, a licensed master social worker at Thriveworks in Virginia.
“Defendants had a more negative outlook on life and in general had increased psychosomatic symptomology,” he says. “The health of the group with the longest exposure to legal proceedings saw the greatest deterioration.”
Some of the most common symptoms associated with litigation: insomnia, anger, frustration, humiliation, headaches, lack of concentration, loss of self-confidence, indecision, anxiety, despondency, and other symptoms similar to the signs of post-traumatic stress disorder.
People of limited means can very rapidly rack up large debt in terms of fees and costs, which can ruin their credit, Beattie says. “For example, attorneys’ fees in contested divorces can far exceed a couple’s assets, making any victory purely theoretical. No one wins a court case, because even the award of a large amount of money cannot heal or undo the damage done.”
Mediation can be the best way for people to avoid the monumental emotional and financial investment that going to court can cause, Beattie says. “Through mediation a dispute can be resolved in one or two months rather than years. Mediation is especially helpful for parties with an ongoing relationship, such as parents. The parties can agree to terms, such as an apology, that a court could not require."
Even when an approach cannot be formally described as mediation, social workers often help in resolving disputes, such as those between parents and children, between a client and an agency with whom the client needs services, or between spouses.
“Unlike in court, parties in a mediation do not prove their version of events or interpretation of the law; instead, the focus is on finding a mutually agreeable solution,” he says. “Because mediation is less about assigning blame, the process is far less emotionally draining than going to court.”