Q: I have been served with foreclosure papers on my home. The papers include a referral to mandatory mediation. What is this and can it help me? – Ingrid

A: Mediation is a process in which both sides of a dispute meet with an unbiased third party trained to help people work out their differences. In mediation, each side has a chance to compromise and agree to a solution so that a judge doesn’t force one on the parties. Mediation can end in a successful settlement or it can reach an “impasse” in which the parties don’t agree to a resolution.

Two years ago, the Florida Supreme Court ordered that mediations must take place in every foreclosure case involving a person’s primary residence. The homeowner has to fill out a lot of paperwork and submit financial information before the mediation.

Unfortunately, the program has been expensive for lenders and not successful in resolving the foreclosure problem. Statewide, between March 2010 and March 2011, only 3.6 percent of all cases referred to mediation ended in a written agreement. A committee is recommending changes to the program, but the Florida Supreme Court has yet to decide on anything.

My take is that there's a systematic failure by the program managers to get the borrowers to participate, and lenders are not prepared and only going through the motions. Also, many homeowners mistakenly think their foreclosure cases are somehow on hold until after the meditation. I feel that mediation should not be mandatory; it should be available to homeowners by request only. For a successful mediation, you must timely send in all of the required paperwork and go in with realistic expectations. I have mediated many cases to a successful conclusion, and the key is being well-prepared and informed about the process.

The information and materials on this blog are provided for general informational purposes only and are not intended to be legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is formed, nor should any such relationship be implied. Nothing on this blog is intended to substitute for the advice of an attorney, especially an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.

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