There is a perception that because of the unenforceable nature of mediation as a method of dispute resolution it is doomed to failure. However there is significant empirical evidence that indicates that mediation is a very effective method of dispute resolution. Across a wide of jurisdictions, in family law cases research indicates that mediation is effective in between 50% and 85% of cases with participants satisfied as to the procedure and outcomes involved.

In the context of family law, mediation is seen to be particularly effective because of the way in which mediation promotes the self-determination of the parties in a context where the discussions are confidential. It also has the marked advantage of giving the parties to the dispute the sense of being listened to in a way which simply cannot be achieved through formal litigation.

In relation to matters outside the realm of family law, mediation remains an effective dispute resolution mechanism although perhaps not at the same levels as is the case in family law. However, participants recognise the same advantages as in the case of family law participants. Parties recognise that mediators listen to the parties concerns and give them the opportunity to voice their concerns in front of a third independent party. Participants in the mediation process also report a greater sense of control over the mediation process than they have in relation to other types of dispute resolution, particularly, litigation which tends to be dominated by the procedural emphasis of courts.

Another type of dispute settlement is known as arbitration. Arbitrators decisions are binding on parties but are not arrived at using the same formal rules of evidence as in courts. In smaller civil claims jurisdictions, arbitration has a very good track record in terms of achieving dispute settlement when compared with traditional litigation. Research conducted on the claims records of the District Court in New South Wales, Australia clearly indicates this. Overall, the research indicates that mediation and arbitration are extremely effective methods of dispute resolution which achieve this outcomes by reducing average settlement times and increasing settlement rates whilst achieving the a substantially reduced caseload for the traditional court system. Many of the jurisdictions inundated by their case loads such as the family law jurisdiction and increasingly the estates jurisdiction are utilising mediation and arbitration as effective family law and estate litigation disputes settlement procedures, respectively.