Ed Ahrens loves freelance writing and enjoys helping others engaged in the same pursuit. He cannot, however, escape his involvement in and enjoyment of dispute resolution, helping litigants and disputants resolve their differences. In Florida, as in most states, mediation has become a legislated and highly regulated process for avoiding the expense, stress, delay and uncertainty of a trial. While the success or failure of a mediation proceeding depends as much on the parties involved as on the mediator, the fact is, on average, mediations settle three-quarters of the disputes that come before a mediator. And, when not settled in mediation, the process often sets the stage for a settlement before trial.

Ahrens' experiences with almost 700 mediations over the last several years are reflected in his Ed'sitorials written for Florida Mediation Group's website and can be found, along with many other valuable resources, on FMG's Internet site at: www.2mediate.com. While on a subject in which not everyone has an interest, we would hope that the humor, format and insightful approach in these articles will be of interest and help to writers.