Mediation
Mediation is a private negotiation in which a neutral person, the mediator, helps both sides try to reach a settlement without a trial.
Also called: settlement mediation, mediated settlement
Mediation is a private negotiation in which a neutral person, the mediator, helps both sides try to reach a settlement without a trial.
What it means
Mediation is a negotiation led by a neutral person called a mediator. The mediator does not decide who is right and cannot force a deal. The job is to hear both sides, test their arguments, carry offers back and forth and help them find terms they can both accept.
Federal law requires each federal district court to allow alternative dispute resolution in civil cases, and mediation is one of the processes it names. The statute also directs courts to keep what is said in these sessions confidential. Class action settlements are often reached with a mediator's help, either a private mediator the sides choose or someone from the court's own program.
A mediated deal is not final. A class action settlement still needs the judge's approval, first at preliminary approval and then at final approval. The judge may ask who the mediator was and how the talks went, because a neutral in the room can show the deal was not a quiet bargain between lawyers.
What it means for you
Mediation happens before you hear anything. By the time a notice reaches you, the sides have usually agreed on the main terms. You cannot sit in on the sessions, but you can read the result. The notice describes the deal, and the full agreement is usually posted on the settlement website.
A mediator's role is one sign that the sides bargained at arm's length, meaning as independent parties, and the judge must consider that. But a mediator is not a stamp of approval. If you think the terms are unfair, you can still object.
Example
Say a streaming service and its subscribers' lawyers have argued for two years about an unadvertised price increase. They hire a mediator and spend a day in separate rooms while the mediator carries offers back and forth. By evening they agree on a settlement fund and a plan for splitting it. Nothing is final yet. They file the deal and ask the judge for preliminary approval, so notice can go out to subscribers.
FAQ
No. A mediator only helps the sides negotiate. Each side can walk away, and a class action settlement is not final until the judge approves it.
No. A mediator only helps the sides negotiate, while an arbitrator hears the dispute and issues a decision.
Related terms
- 28 U.S.C. § 651, alternative dispute resolution authorized (Cornell LII)
- 28 U.S.C. § 652, consideration of ADR and confidentiality (Cornell LII)
- Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23, class actions (Cornell LII)
- Judges' Class Action Notice and Claims Process Checklist and Plain Language Guide (Federal Judicial Center, 2010)
Updated Oct 18, 2026. Plain-English definitions for general information — not legal or tax advice.