Question: Do I have to go to mediation, even if I want to go straight to court?
Answer:This depends on the terms of the contract that you have signed and whether you are required to go to mediation as a part of a court order. Often in commercial arrangements, a dispute resolution clause will be added to the agreement where it will require the parties to go to mediation before undertaking court action. This can including providing for certain deadlines in relation to when parties must remedy a breach of the agreement, after which point the parties might be required to go to mediation if no resolution has been reached.