Mediation as an Effective Alternative in Bankruptcy Litigation, Part I

I heard it said many years ago that Chapter 11 is an invitation to negotiation. It could be said that the invitation is hardly limited to that chapter, frankly, though the reorganization process most heavily relies on negotiated solutions for its effectiveness. Yet, parties seem surprisingly reluctant to make use of mediation as a mechanism to achieve negotiated solutions. This series of articles is devoted to the subject of mediation in bankruptcy—why people may not be using it, how it can used effectively, pitfalls to avoid, and ethical issues that can arise.