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AGREEMENT TO MEDIATE Successful mediation is built on the acceptance by all participants of certain basic understandings and rules which guide the process. We the parties, (defined in this document as principals and their counsel), and The Mediation Group, agree that: 1. The Mediation Group will undertake to help the parties reach an agreement which is acceptable to all of the parties. Any of the parties may withdraw from this mediation at any time and for any reason. However, a party cancelling a mediation session within 14 calendar days of the scheduled meeting will be responsible for a fee, as set forth in the TMG fee schedule. 2. Each party agrees that it will have present at the mediation a principal with full and adequate authority to reach a reasonable settlement. If such a principal cannot be present, the mediation can proceed only if: a) a principal with such authority can be reached by telephone at any time during the mediation; AND b) the mediator and all of the other parties have given approval AT LEAST TWO DAYS BEFORE the mediation for this telephone arrangement. The parties understand that failure to comply with any part of this policy may, at the discretion of the mediator, result in a postponement of the mediation session, with the party failing to comply being charged according to the rate set out in the TMG fee schedule. 3. Each party agrees to submit to the mediator, at least five business days before the first mediation session, a confidential overview (of approximately 2-4 pages) summarizing its view of the case. This overview may highlight facts or law in dispute, any negotiating history, and the procedural status of the case. 4. The mediator agrees to keep in confidence everything he/she hears in the mediation to the fullest extent permitted by law. In order to protect this confidentiality, the parties agree that the mediator will not be called as a witness, nor will his/her work product or case file be sought by either party in any subsequent court or administrative action. 5. The parties agree that any information, written materials or disclosures made during the mediation shall be treated as though covered by Rule 408 of the Federal Rules of Evidence and shall not be admissible in any subsequent proceedings unless otherwise discoverable. 7. The parties understand that, although it is often difficult at the beginning of a mediation to establish its duration, it will be useful to set an initial time frame for the mediation. Typically, the first session of a mediation is scheduled for a three-hour block. Additional sessions can be scheduled as appropriate. 8. Each party agrees to pay the fee for that party according to the TMG fee schedule. Unless a different arrangement is agreed to by all parties and The Mediation Group, TMG will invoice counsel representing each party to the mediation. 9. Multiple copies of this agreement with separate signatures shall serve as one merged agreement.
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