(Department of Food and Resource Economics, 2000-09) Duke, Joshua M.; Jost, Ryan P.
Since 1982, the New Castle County Superior Court in Delaware has promoted mediation, which
attempts to resolve filed conflicts prior to trial. This paper evaluates how spatial land-use
conflicts channel through mediation and litigation. Data suggest that mediations fail because one
of the key disputing parties does not play a direct role in mediation and litigation. The data then
inform a predictive model of litigated outcomes in which disputants share in the responsibility
for conflict. By alleviating some of the uncertainty of litigation and proposing win-win,
mediated outcomes, the model may be used facilitate future mediations.
