Let’s talk about mediation in film. When we see lawyers portrayed in the media, it is often a stark contrast to the practice of law in the real world. We find ourselves shaking our heads at the speed at which deals are completed or the advice provided to clients.

One aspect of the law that we see portrayed in film is mediation. Some of these portrayals are done much better than others. One such movie that does a good job at it, which is ironic because we would not think of it as a serious movie for any other purpose, is Wedding Crashers.

In this movie, Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson’s characters are mediators and are seen conducting a mediation between a couple that is separating. While there are aspects of this mediation that would not occur in real life, it does bring up two important points about mediation.

The first is the benefit mediation provides by allowing parties to resolve the proceedings quickly. In the movie, one of the lawyers tells his client that mediation was a bad idea. Vince Vaughn quickly suggests that the bad idea would actually be to walk away from the mediation and drag the proceedings out for another year given the progress they have already made. Obviously, mediation will not work for every client and every situation. However, a huge benefit of mediation is the ability to bring the proceedings to a swift conclusion and allow the parties to move on with their lives. This is an important consideration to discuss with our clients, especially where they may be struggling with the idea that mediation involves compromising.

The second point this mediation scene briefly touches on is signing minutes of settlement before the parties leave the mediation. At the end of a long day of mediating, the parties are exhausted, and the last thing they want to do is spend time hashing out the minutes of settlement. However, if you are able to sign the minutes of settlement before the end of the mediation, it prevents the potential for going back and forth for months arguing over terms of the minutes of settlement and racking up even higher legal fees. Signing the minutes of settlement at the mediation helps to tie everything up in the same day.

While the point of this movie could not be further from portraying a semi-realistic mediation, it does actually serve to remind us of some important facets of mediation. So in true wedding fashion, here’s to Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson!

Thank you for reading!

Darien Murray