Yes! Mediation is generally very cost effective. The cost of resolving your legal case or dispute will ultimately depend on how many people are involved and how complicated the case is.
Sometimes, only one party need to hire a lawyer, and both parties hire a mediator. The cost is then far less than hiring two lawyers.
Sometimes people hire one mediator and each person hires a consulting lawyer for “advice and consult” and to review contracts and agreements. This still reduces the overall costs dramatically. To find a lawyer who can help you provide this type of service, ask the lawyer if they provide “unbundled services” or offer “advice and consults.”
Sometimes each person needs to hire a lawyer to more fully represent them in the mediation process, and/or in a combined medation-litigation process. If this is the case, the cost of resolving the case will be more expensive, but mediation is still usually quite less expensive overall because the mediation process is designed to reduce the overall level of conflict and fighting and to shorten the overall process. This results in less overall lawyer time involved in the case. Plus the results are almost always far better than letting a judge make choices for you.
In mediation, parties can hire mutual experts to help them resolve issues. For example, one realtor to help determine the value of their home, or one parenting coach to help with parenting matters. Mediation is much more flexible than the court process for sharing these types of things. These “experts” can be included in the mediation confidentiality provisions.