How Long Does Mediation Take

How long does mediation take? A question our mediation company gets asked all the time is how long will mediation take? The answer is it will depend upon what type of mediation service you need. For example a mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAMS) may take much longer than a straight forward commercial mediation. The exact circumstances of each dispute determine what type of mediation you need, and how long it will take.

How Long Does A MIAMS Mediation Take?

A MIAMS is a compulsory process that an individual must go through if they are looking to  divorce or separate. An initial session can last between forty to ninety minutes. If your matter is straightforward you may not need more than one or two sessions.

However if your issues are complicated involving children, finances, property division and so forth you may need a number of sessions which would ordinarily take place over a few weeks, months. Learn more about MIAMS. 

How Long Does A Workplace Mediation Take?

A typical work mediation based on two to four employees would take one full day of between eight to ten hours.If there are five or more employees then ideally two separate days would be needed.

If two days were needed then it would be ideal to have them consecutively. So if day one was a Monday, day two should ideally be the next day on the Tuesday.

Amount Of Employees	Breakdown Of The Day
Two employees.   With a 10.30 start & an 18.30 finish.	10.30 – 11.30 Private confidential meeting with employee 1. 11.45 – 12.45 Private confidential meeting with employee 2. 13.30 – 18.30 Private and joint meetings with both as appropriate.
Four employees.   With a 10.30 start & an 20.30 finish.   (Of course you could always start & finish earlier / later.	10.30 – 11.30 Private confidential meeting with employee 1. 11.45 – 12.45 Private confidential meeting with employee 2. 13.00 – 14.00 Private confidential meeting with employee 3. 14.30 – 15.30 Private confidential meeting with employee 4. 15.45 – 20.30 Private and joint meetings with all 4 as appropriate.
Five employees.   Day one with a 10.30 start & an 19.15 finish.   Day two with a 10.30 start & an 18.30 finish.	10.30 – 12.00 Private confidential meeting with employee 1. 12.15 – 13.45 Private confidential meeting with employee 2. 14.15 – 15.45 Private confidential meeting with employee 3. 16.00 – 17.30 Private confidential meeting with employee 4. 17.45 – 19.15 Private confidential meeting with employee 5.   Day two would be a mixture of private & joint meetings between all 5 as appropriate.

How Long Does A Boundary Mediation Take?

Any boundary mediation dispute always needs one full day, eight to twelve hours. Because they are very complicated disputes and the parties are nine times out of ten, extremely entrenched in their positions.

You need to remember a person’s house is their castle, therefore boundary disputes always involve an extra layer of upset, as individuals take things just that bit more personally compared to other types of disputes. As they can feel their safety, their safe place (their house where they live) has come under attack.

How Long Does A Commercial Mediation Take?

A commercial mediation will take anywhere between three to twelve hours plus. Rarely will a commercial mediation need to be more than one day. Disputes which are fairly straight forward and have a value of less than £10,000 can usually be mediated within three hours.

Disputes with a value of £15,000 – £50,000 will generally need between four to six hours. Disputes with a value of over £50,000 will typically need six to twelve plus hours.

Dispute Type	Timings
Two parties over a straight forward contract dispute with a value of £10,000. employees.	09.00 – 09.30 First joint session, to include both parties delivering their position statements.   09.30 – 12.00 A series of private and joint meetings between both as appropriate. To include drawing up the final settlement agreement as a binding contract, a Consent or Tomlin order.
Two parties over a not so straight forward property dispute with a value of £49,500.	09.00 – 10.00 First joint session, to include both parties delivering their position statements.   10.00 – 14.00 / 16.00 A series of private and joint meetings between both as appropriate. To include drawing up the final settlement agreement as a binding contract, a Consent or Tomlin order.
Three parties over a complicated construction dispute with a value of £3.7 million.	09.00 – 10.30 / 12.00 First joint session, to include all three parties delivering their position statements.   10.30 / 12.00  – 18.30 / 21.00+ A series of private and joint meetings as appropriate between all three parties. To include drawing up the final settlement agreement as a binding contract, a Consent or Tomlin order.

The mediation session will more than likely take longer, if there are more than two parties, and or it is a complex matter and or the higher the value of the claim and or counter claim.  

Two Real Life Examples Of How Long Mediation Took

However, to totally contradict myself, I mediated a contract dispute on the 7^th of May 2026, which had a value of approximately £30,000, whereby I got the parties to a settlement within one hour and twenty two minutes. We started at 10.00 and finished at 11.22. 

If we then compare that to the probate dispute which I mediated on the 1^st of June 2026. Which had four parties / beneficiaries, with the value of the estate at £2.3 million. It took me nearly seventeen hours to get the parties to a settlement. In fact drafting the settlement agreement itself took just over four hours. We started at 09.00 and finshed at 02.00 the next day. 

Conclusion

As always each dispute is unique and comes with its own complexities, disputants and their own personalities, competing wants and needs. Therefore the above is a general guide based on our real life experience of how long does mediation take. Contact Effective Dispute Solutions, get your free consult and we can tell you exactly how long your mediation will take and give you a  confidential no obligation free consult and mediation cost.