How mediators can help with relationship repairs

In Part One last month, author Dwight Golann described the results of a survey he conducted of 32 mediators involving about 60 matters where there was a relationship between the parties. He found, among other things, that integrative settlement terms — though not necessarily those that repair or continue a relationship — appeared in nearly two‐thirds of the survey group's 44 settling cases. But comparatively few parties walked away from the negotiating table into a settlement in which the relationship could be considered repaired. This month, Golann explores the factors that affect the likelihood that a relationship will be revived.