New Jersey Supreme Court Enforces Oral Settlement Agreement, But Requires Signed Agreements in the Future Before Mediation Ends
September 19, 2013

Parties in a commercial dispute reached an oral agreement in mediation, but the lack of a signed settlement agreement resulted in litigation. The New Jersey Supreme Court ultimately upheld the oral agreement, but established a requirement that future mediated settlements must be written agreements signed before the mediation ends. The Court noted that the plaintiff could have avoided enforcement of the oral agreement simply by relying on the confidentiality of mediation. Instead, the plaintiff engaged...

Federal Court in Ohio Upholds Oral Settlement Agreement Reached in Mediation
September 9, 2013

Applying Ohio and Sixth Circuit law, a federal court in Ohio upheld an oral settlement agreement reached in mediation, even though plaintiffs changed their minds after mediation and refused to sign a written agreement. The court found that an agreement had been reached in mediation because settlement was reported to the court by the mediator and was confirmed by plaintiffs’ counsel asking for more time to obtain signatures. However, plaintiffs had forgotten to ask that their credit history be cleaned...

Mediated Settlement in Class Action Upheld Based on Term Sheet
May 27, 2013

Mediation in California resulted in the parties reaching an agreement, signing a term sheet and reporting success to the federal...