Building and remodeling
breed strong
emotions, and strong
emotions breed disputes.
As consultant Linda Case
says in her remodeling
seminars, "There will
come a time in every
remodeling project when
the client will be very,
very angry with you."
Construction disputes
may be inevitable. But if
you plan for conflict,
rather than hope to avoid
it, it can strengthen
rather than threaten the
owner-contractor relationship.
Mediation is
perhaps the best way to
plan for conflict, by providing
an amicable way
to resolve it. Unfortunately,
few contractors
know how mediation
works and what it offers.
Maintaining Focus
Mediation means asking
a neutral third party
to intervene between two
conflicting parties to help
them settle a dispute. The
mediator does not dictate
the solution; he or she
simply helps the two parties find a
mutually agreeable settlement.
As