Whilst participants are often able to reach agreements themselves in mediation, sometimes finding a voluntary agreement between the participants can be difficult. This is where the process of Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE) can be particularly helpful to overcome an impasse. So what is Early Neutral Evaluation?
Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE) involves a more structured and evaluative approach, with a neutral evaluator, often referred to as a Legal Neutral, providing an informed view on how they consider a court would determine the issues.
ENE is a process in which a neutral evaluator—usually an experienced family lawyer (either a solicitor or barrister) or a retired judge – reviews the facts of a dispute. The evaluator provides an impartial assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of each person’s position, offering opinions on how a court might rule and the likelihood of success for each party. The goal is to give the participants a clearer understanding (from a neutral perspective) of their views, which can help them make more informed decisions about settlement.
The Process Of Early Neutral Evaluation
- Initiation: ENE is typically introduced by the mediator when it becomes apparent that the participants are not able to reach an agreement voluntarily themselves. The option will be discussed with the participants and if they both agree a neutral family lawyer will be instructed jointly by the participants.
- Submission of Information: Each participant will provide a summary of the issues to the neutral evaluator prior to the evaluation.
- Evaluation by the Neutral: The evaluator will review the submitted information and will meet with the participants at a joint mediation meeting and provide their feedback and assessment of how a court might rule on the matter. The evaluator’s opinion is not binding, but it is often persuasive in guiding participants toward a resolution.
- Negotiation or Settlement: After the evaluation the participants can then engage in discussions about settlement during the mediation meeting.
- Confidentiality: The ENE process is confidential, and the evaluator’s opinions or assessments cannot be referred to later in court proceedings if the participants are unable to resolve matters in mediation.
Benefits Of Early Neutral Evaluation
- Realistic Case Assessment: One of the most significant advantages of ENE is that it provides participants with an early, impartial assessment of their arguments’ strengths and weaknesses. Often, participants involved in a dispute may have an inflated sense of their positions’ merits, and the evaluator’s feedback can help ground their expectations in reality.
- Facilitates Settlement: By giving people, a clearer understanding of how a neutral third party views their dispute, ENE can help to break deadlocks and pave the way for meaningful settlement discussions. The evaluator’s insights may prompt participants to re-evaluate their positions and consider more flexible solutions.
- Cost-Effective: ENE can save people time and money by providing early guidance on the potential success of the issues. This can help avoid unnecessary litigation and costs.
- Time-Saving: Resolving disputes in mediation is much quicker than taking matters to court – the average length of time it takes to resolve a matter in court is currently 44 weeks!
- Reduced Emotional Conflict: In many disputes, emotions can cloud judgment and hinder constructive negotiation. ENE provides a more objective perspective on the issues helping to defuse emotional tension and focus on resolving the dispute.
- Flexibility: ENE is a flexible process that can be tailored to the specific needs of the participants. It can take place in person or online at times convenient to the participants.
Non-Binding: Because the evaluator’s opinions are non-binding, people retain full control over the outcome of the dispute. The evaluator’s insights are simply a tool to help the participants make better decisions, rather than a ruling that they must accept.
If you would like further information about Early Neutral Evaluation, please contact Rebekah by email on info@evolvefamilymediation.co.uk or 01923 909343
(Photo by Scott Graham on Unsplash)