Storytelling in Familial Arbitration and Mediation

Foreword
When families seek the services of a mediator, the officiate occasionally weaves the facts and stories of both sides' cases into a more poignant, easily understood narrative illustrating the key points and issues in a more middle-ground fashion.  These stories vary in length and serve as a means of allowing the families to analyze their own situations from a third-party, less-biased perspective, enabling the wronged on both sides to understand their "opponents."

I made up the following story- As I don't yet have... Err... Any experience in my field, I honestly can't guarantee how much it typifies the stories my future colleagues are currently using: I only have second-hand knowledge from my Career Exploration professor, career fairs, and the occasional expositive mediation specials on television.

Example Story

• Setup: Four siblings seek mediation over the unequal estate settlement of their deceased parents, three of them feeling the house inherited by one, we'll call him Gerald, outweighed the monetary compensation received by the others. 
• "Gerald, in your parents' joint-will, they opted to leave you your childhood home: as far as liquid assets go, the home doesn't (and wouldn't) provide much financially.  In fact, its state of disrepair after all these years poses a substantial financial obligation, making it, in many ways, a negative asset for your portfolio.
  
  "However, your siblings feel there is immense difficulty in placing a price on sentimentality.  You now own the doorstep on which your sister had her first kiss, the living room where your family celebrated every Christmas, the tree under which the family dog was buried... In essence, your inheritance's value is more 3-dimensional than you may have previously accounted for, and shows just whom your parents trusted the most.  You now own a physical representation of every positive and negative experience of your siblings' childhoods, and they wish to negotiate an agreement wherein their emotional upheaval can be assuaged."

Analysis

This story restates what "Gerald" told the mediator, showing that, whatever decisions are to be made, he is, in fact, understood.  It also serves as a representation of similarity/difference, exposing to the intended audience the views of, in this case, his opponents.

Retelling the Story

• If the mediator in this story were to speak to Gerald's siblings instead, he would probably flip the order in which he addressed each party's grievances, establishing understanding communication before introducing difficult subject matter.
• "If I'm understanding you correctly, you three feel, first off, caught off-guard by your parents' apparent favoritism and special treatment of your brother.  They left him your childhoods: Memories of almost every "first," the grave of your family pet, the time capsules hidden in the now finished basement...

• However, Gerald was rather confused at the contents of your parents' will.  The years of neglect due to your parents' senescence have left the house in a sorry state of disrepair, cutting its financial value significantly.  As a negative asset, the money your parents left to you far outweighs the physical worth of Gerald's inheritance.  That being said, he wants to ensure everyone agrees to something: Whether or not it's the exact contents of your parents' will."