We were consulted by a client who was in a bitter and lengthy dispute with his mother following the sale of an investment property she had purchased with an unwritten family agreement that the profit would be divided equally between the children. One of the children consulted us as the property was sold and he did not receive his full share, with his mother denying any agreement.
The emotional consequence was so severe that it split the family and resulted in our client not speaking to his mother or siblings for a lengthy period, characterised by hostile communications.
Our recommendation was to use mediation as a mechanism to seek a resolution and approached our client's mother with a positive suggestion to find a solution through mediation, setting out the possibilities of positive outcomes which would be beneficial to both parties. We did not take an adversarial or aggressive approach to demand money from our client's mother, as the context was the values and long-term benefits of a cohesive family.
Our client's mother responded very positively to our approach and despite consulting her solicitor, decided to mediate the issue despite us acting for her son. Whilst this is not true mediation, we professionally facilitated a positive outcome, using mediation principles, resulting in a family being reunited and the money issue being resolved.