Creative Settlement

Here is a most creative mediated settlement reported by one of our subscribers (name withheld to protect the innocent). In a $100,000 business dispute the parties agreed that the defendant would pay $60,000 to charity -- $30,000 to a charity of the plaintiff's choosing and $30,000 to a charity of the defendant's choosing.They also discussed the tax deduction and the plaintiff agreed the defendant could take the entire deduction. The mediator humbly stated "I can't claim any credit. It was the defendant's idea and his attorney tells me he has settled a number of disputes this way recently."

We'd love to hear of other creative settlements you've negotiated, mediated, or simply know of.