Email from Defense Counsel 1 Hour Before Mediation: “Hey Rob: You need not worry about getting the Zoom instructions to us; my claims rep and I will be available by phone as needed during the mediation.”
Discussion with Plaintiff’s Counsel On Zoom 10 Minutes Into Mediation: “So, Rob, what is up with these defendants? Are they afraid to show their faces or are they just going through the motions on this one? I guess we won’t be taking up too much of your time, today.”
Three years ago, we decided to offer a video mediation option. We researched various platforms. We learned that Zoom offered breakout rooms, the equivalent of private caucus rooms at our office. We signed up immediately, and the video mediations that we conducted went very smoothly.
Fast forward to March 2020. Everyone is Zooming! The reviews have been universally positive. Lawyers are talking about continuing with Zoom mediation after the COVID crisis passes.
So what’s the problem? The number one problem we are running into: people not taking full advantage of the video option. They insist on various forms of telephone appearance, usually without ever trying out the video option. Not surprisingly to us, by the way, we have encountered far more technical problems with the people dialing in than with those who log in and utilize the full functionality of this user-friendly and effective platform.
As mediation regulars have learned through experience, non-verbal communication is extremely important. Why not maximize the effectiveness of your communications with the other parties? As counsel are wont to remind first-time participants at mediation, mediation is frequently the only opportunity to speak directly with the other side. You want them to see you and vice versa. Zoom gives you that opportunity, but only if you will take advantage of it.
When you phone it in, you lose a healthy portion of the benefit of mediation. You unwittingly build distrust instead of trust. You make it far more difficult for the other participants to understand the message that you intend to convey. Why?
It appears that some of our mediation clients do not want to participate by video during a video mediation because they misunderstand Zoom, how it works and some of its features.
To help people get comfortable with Zoom, we offer technical assistance from virtualmediationhosting.com, at our expense!!!!!
What if you or one of your clients must use telephone? As a back-up plan, Zoom provides a dial-in option. But please, please, please remember that the telephone conference is only a back-up plan for a reason: it is nowhere near as effective as the video conference.
