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FAQ
How does mediation work? Mediation is a process where disputing parties sit down with a neutral mediator, who acts to encourage and facilitate a mutually acceptable agreement. This is far different from litigation or even arbitration, in which the resolution of the dispute is imposed on the parties. Because the outcome is mutually agreed upon, mediation is seen as the “win-win” alternative. In litigation there is generally one loser–and sometimes two. What is the mediator’s role? The mediator has no stake in the outcome of the dispute and has no authority to impose decisions on the parties. Rather, the mediator’s role is to open lines of communication, help the parties understand their interests, develop and assess their options, and shape their own settlement. To help encourage the parties to speak candidly, it is usually agreed that everything said in mediation is confidential. The mediator is familiar with the relevant legal issues involved but does not provide legal advice to the parties. When an agreement is reached, the mediator drafts a “memorandum of understanding” that is forwarded to both parties and their attorneys. Are certain types of disputes better suited to mediation than others? Mediation has been successfully applied in construction, commercial and business disputes, divorce cases, parentage cases, personal injury claims, employee grievances, real estate disputes, product liability cases, contested estates and guardianships, and virtually every other type of civil case imaginable. What if mediation doesn’t work? If mediation does not result in an agreement between the parties, litigation is still an option. But even in cases where a complete agreement is not reached, the parties often reach partial agreements or are able to narrow...
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Services
McCarthy-Bickes Mediation Center offers mediation services covering a wide range of disputes and conflicts, including the following: Divorce disputes Parentage disputes Custody/visitation disputes Construction litigation Commercial disputes Personal injury claims Employee grievances Real estate disputes Landlord and tenant disputes Contested estates Contested...
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About
Kurt Bickes and Katherine “Kitty” McCarthy started McCarthy-Bickes Mediation Center as a means to help people solve disagreements and disputes that would otherwise become costly and time-consuming, if drawn through the courts or otherwise. With extensive experience in handling even the most contested disputes, Kurt and Kitty are confident that any disagreement can be resolved in a manner that is affordable and agreeable to both parties. Kurt Bickes and his wife of 25 years, Wendy, reside in Decatur, Illinois. Kurt and his wife have two grown sons and one daughter-in-law, and they enjoy two energetic grandchildren. EDUCATION AND TRAINING 1982 – Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 1985 – Doctor of Jurisprudence (JD), Southern Illinois School of Law, Carbondale, Illinois 1996 – Forty (40) hour Performance Based Mediation Skills Training, CDR Associates, Boulder, Colorado 2005 – Forty (40) hour Civil Court Mediation Training, Mediation Resources, Charleston, South Carolina 1985- Present – Extensive legal and mediation continuing education. PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS Member, Decatur Bar Association Member, Illinois State Bar Association (Alternative Dispute Resolution Section) Member, Academy of Professional Family Mediators Member, Association for Conflict Resolution PROFESSIONAL In 1985, Kurt Bickes joined the Decatur, Illinois law firm of Rosenberg, Rosenberg, Bickes, Johnson & Richardson as an Associate. Over the past 30 years, Kurt has built a thriving civil practice, concentrating in civil litigation, family law, construction litigation, real estate, estate planning and mediation. Kurt Bickes is presently a partner in the “AV-rated” Decatur, Illinois law firm of Bickes, Wilson & Moss. COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT Member, Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Decatur, Illinois Commission member, United Lutheran Mission Association Board of Trustees, Walther Theological Seminary Board of...
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What is Mediation?
Mediation is an effective, affordable, non-adversarial problem-solving process in which a neutral skilled professional (“the mediator”) helps parties involved in a dispute to resolve that conflict. In many areas of litigation today, mediation has become the preferred method of settling disputes. Increasingly, courts and tribunals refuse to hear cases unless the parties have first tried to resolve their differences through mediation. For example, most states now require some sort of mediation before local courts will hear child custody or visitation disputes. It is also becoming increasingly common for commercial enterprises to use mediation as an established process for resolving employer-employee disputes. Many contracts include a mediation clause as well. Mediation involves bringing the parties in conflict together. The mediator works with those parties to facilitate productive discussion designed to identify underlying interests and to encourage the parties to work together to find the best solution to resolving the conflict at hand. Litigation differs from mediation because litigation is about legal positions and lawyers, where mediation is about reconciling interests and the clients or parties. In litigation, the attorneys have free reign to speak, at almost any time, while the litigants participate only as a witness. Mediation, by contrast, puts the parties center stage, where a skilled neutral person encourages them to work together to solve the problem. A hallmark of mediation is the self determination of the parties, the ones who know most about the conflict and its causes. Generally speaking, litigation looks to the past, where mediation involves looking to the future. In litigation, the court ends the dispute one way or another. In mediation, it is the parties that both end the dispute and resolve it in...
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"Mediation is affordable and effective at settling any dispute."
What is Mediation?
Mediation is an effective, affordable, non-adversarial problem-solving process in which a neutral skilled professional (“the mediator”) helps parties involved in a dispute to resolve that conflict. In many areas of litigation today, mediation has become the preferred method of settling disputes. Increasingly, courts and tribunals refuse to hear cases unless the parties have first tried to resolve their differences through mediation.
Read MoreFAQ
How does mediation work?
Mediation is a process where disputing parties sit down with a neutral mediator, who acts to encourage and facilitate a mutually acceptable agreement. This is far different from litigation or even arbitration, in which the resolution of the dispute is imposed on the parties.
Read MoreAbout
Kurt Bickes and Katherine “Kitty” McCarthy started McCarthy-Bickes Mediation Center as a means to help people solve disagreements and disputes that would otherwise become costly and time-consuming, if drawn through the courts or otherwise. With extensive experience in handling even the most contested disputes, Kurt and Kitty are confident that any disagreement can be resolved in a manner that is affordable and agreeable to both parties.
Read More