First Paragraph
As it glides down a broad valley, a river occasionally cuts a second channel, so that its water flows in parallel conduits. The second channel behaves in a manner quite different from the main artery (usually it runs faster) and it can modify the nature of the main river (decreasing its volume). Analogously, the civil court system has opened a second channel - mediation - in which the process/flow is quite different from that in the main civil-case channel. As such, the mediation channel is perhaps modifying the primary system.
Recommended Citation
James A. Wall & Kyle R. Holley, Mediation's Effects: Test, Don't Guess, 7 Y.B. Arb. & Mediation 117 (2015).