Mediation is a practice or a discipline that aims to define the intervention of a third party in order to facilitate the circulation of information, provide clarification or re-establish relations. This neutral, independent and impartial third party is called the mediator. The definition of this activity varies depending on the context in which it is applied.
It is one of the Alternative Dispute Resolution methods (ADR). Other such methods include arbitration, the ombudsman or quite simply negotiation between the parties.
This is a very useful method in the event of a dispute within family businesses. Mediation makes it possible to re-establish contact between members of the same family, find a solution that avoids conflicts between branches of the family for generations and often also to ensure the long-term future of the estate.