By the Friday before the scheduled mediation, each party should submit a confidential mediation brief to Mr. Myers electronically to dmyers@myersmediation.com. In addition, at either party’s election, a hard copy of the brief may be delivered to MYERS MEDIATION, 1032 Santa Barbara Street, Santa Barbara, California, 93101.

The parties are encouraged to submit their briefs in the form of a letter, attaching critical documents. While there is no limit to what or how much can be submitted, thought should be given to which documents, if any, need to be attached to the brief. Additionally, there is no need to include deposition testimony as an exhibit to the brief, as it will be assumed the facts outlined in the brief are supported by the evidence in the case.

The parties are encouraged to focus on the facts of the case, with a brief overview of the legal theories from each side. If there is an interesting legal issue, a party may point it out. But, if the case is fairly straight forward, the parties’ time is better spent on the factual elements.

Please be straightforward in the presentation of the evidence and avoid stretching the truth of the testimony. While they are expected to be advocates for their respective parties, counsel must insure that the narrative presented to the mediator is supported by the evidence. Clients are not well served if their attorneys lose credibility through their distortion of the facts.

The parties are encouraged to invest adequate time preparing the case for settlement. This might include time spent obtaining declarations from others, especially third parties, regarding facts related to the case. It is also important that the parties be able to articulate what type of damages, if any, they believe should be awarded or limited.

If the parties have engaged in prior settlement discussions, please include a status of the settlement negotiations in the brief.

During full day mediations, lunch will be provided. Generally, the parties will not “break” for lunch, but will work through lunch. Typically there will be no joint sessions unless specifically requested by the attorneys. Clients should be informed that during mediation, the attorneys may be asked to meet with the mediator outside the presence of their clients at times.