Antitrust cases can arise between competitors, especially when one of them believes the other is violating laws on the subject. These disputes may involve years of litigation and sizable attorneys’ fees to resolve these complex cases. Mediation may be able to resolve these disputes in a more amicable fashion while offering the following advantages:

Lower Costs

Mediation tends to be much less expensive than litigation. Litigating these cases may involve extensive payment of attorneys’ fees. While parties may still be represented by legal counsel at mediation, mediation tends to resolve problems more quickly so that there are fewer fees to pay. The parties may mediate prior to discovery, which is often a lengthy process for parties to get information from the other party, so this can save a sizable amount of money in attorney’s fees. Additionally, the parties can split the costs of mediation between them.

Informed Risk Management

In mediation, the parties have the ability to negotiate their own settlement. In trial, the results may be unpredictable. In mediation, the mediator can provide an objective evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses which he or she communicates to each party individually. This gives the parties a more realistic version of their side of the case. This can provide invaluable information to the parties so that they will be more likely to resolve their case out of court.

More Favorable Environment to Preserve Relationships

Mediation allows the parties to communicate well together. Even as competitors, the parties may be able to retain professional relationships with each other with the help of a mediator.

Possibility for Creative Solutions

The parties are open to make decisions about how they wish to resolve the case. This may allow them to work on projects together or approach a problem in a new way. In litigation, the only remedy may be money damages, but creative solutions may provide better results for the parties.