| Oregon Farm Mediation Program |
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| New ways to solve problems |
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Mediation can help resolve conflicts
- Frustrated with a complaining neighbor?
- Didn´t get that farm rental agreement in writing and don´t know what to do?
- Feeling like you want to wring someone´s neck?
Call the Farm Mediation Program.
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| When to consider mediation |
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Mediation is especially useful when:
- parties are having a difficult time talking with each other
- there is a dispute that the parties cannot resolve themselves,
- a solution through the court system is not desired or would cost more than the parties want to spend in time or money,
- there are many parties involved and the assistance of a mediator could help the parties with communication,
- timely resolution of the dispute is important, or
- an on-going relationship is a critical part of resolving a dispute.
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| Background |
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The farm crisis of the mid-´80s brought about federal legislation that helped fund state mediation programs to assist with financial problems between farmers and their creditors. The Oregon Farm Mediation Program assisted in resolving dozens of credit problems with an 80% agreement rate.
More recently, the Farm Mediation Program has been used to assist farm workers and their agricultural employers in resolving disputes that would have gone to court. This "first in the nation" pilot program has handled nearly 80 agricultural labor cases since 1996 with a settlement rate of nearly 85%.
Other types of problems the program has assisted with include contract disputes, nuisance complaints, farm transition and partnership workouts, trespass situations, and other rural concerns where at least one party is an agricultural producer.
Mediation is gaining wider attention as a useful tool in addressing difficult situations that otherwise may lead to legal action by the parties -- resulting in costly and time consuming efforts. In court one party wins, another loses. And while the idea of getting one's "day in court" may be appealing on the surface, the legal fees and court costs, time obligations, and emotional frustrations take their toll on the parties.
Mediation is an effort to bring all interested parties together early in the dispute. With all parties sitting around the table, information sharing is one of the biggest benefits of mediation. A professional mediator facilitates the discussions and and ensures an impartial "give and take" occurs. The parties negotiate and shape a settlement agreement. The mediator can assist in drafting the document that represents the concepts agreed to by the parties. The mediator acts as a neutral with no decision-making authority. This gives the parties a lot more say in the outcome than they would have in a court setting. It means the parties generally are more satisfied with the settlement and are more inclined to make it work.
The application of mediation to problems in rural areas can be a very useful option for the parties. Whether it's an issue of nuisance complaints, trespass issues, landlord-tenant farmer issues, farm product sales contracts, boundary disputes, family business concerns, or just about any other dispute involving private parties, mediation can be helpful in resolving the problem.
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| Results |
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Parties who have been through mediation are quite satisfied with the process and the outcome. Over 95% of participants would recommend the process to someone else in resolving a dispute. Some other interesting findings from the participants:
- 81% rate mediators as good or very good at effectiveness in assisting parties reach a resolution
- 70% rate mediators as good or very good with understanding of the technical issues of the dispute
- 92% rate mediators as good or very good about being impartial to the parties and the issues in dispute
- 90% rate mediators as good or very good in their professionalism
- Most mediations are completed in about four hours.
- More than 85% of participants were happy with the outcome of the mediation.
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| What does it cost? |
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In most cases, each party to a mediation pays $30 per hour for the service.
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| Contact information |
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Call the Farm Mediation Program at the Oregon Department of Agriculture, 503-986-4558 or 1-800-347-7028 to see if mediation can help.
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