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reunder by the County nor shall SMG have any responsibility whatsoever for such jail. Such temporary jail is expressly excluded from this Agreement and shall not be included in the term "Facility" as used herein. 13.2 Cooperation/Mediation (a) The parties desire to cooperate with each other in the management and op- eration of the Facility pursuant to the terms hereof In keeping with this cooperative spirit and intent, any dispute arising hereunder will first be referred in writing to the parties' respective agents or representatives prior to either party initiating a legal suit, who will endeavor in good faith to resolve any such disputes within the limits of their authority and within forty -five (45) days after the commencement of such discussions. If and only if any dispute remains unresolved after the parties have followed the dispute resolution procedure set forth above, the matter will be resolved pursuant to Section 13.2(b) and (c) below. (b) If any dispute between the parties has not been resolved pursuant to Sec- tion 13.2(a) above, the parties will endeavor to settle the dispute by mediation under the Ameri- can Arbitration Association or other agreed mediator in the Cabarrus County metropolitan area. Within ten (10) business days from the date that the parties cease direct negotiations pursuant to Section 13.2(a) above, the County shall select a neutral third party mediator, who shall be subject to the reasonable approval of SMG. Each party will bear its own cost of mediation; provided, however, the cost charged by any independent third party mediator will be borne equally by the parties. (c) The parties agree that any mediation proceeding (as well as any discussion pursuant to Section 13.2(a) above) will constitute settlement negotiations for purposes of the fed- eral and state rules of evidence and will be treated as non - discoverable, confidential and privi- leged communication by the parties and the mediator. No stenographic, visual or audio record will be made of any mediation proceedings or such discussions. All conduct, statements, prom- ises, offers and opinions made in the course of the mediation or such discussion by any party, its agents, employees, representatives or other invitees and by the mediator will not be discoverable nor admissible for any purposes in any litigation or other proceeding involving the parties and will not be disclosed to any third party. (d) The parties agree that this mediation procedure will be obligatory and par- ticipation therein (but not the mediator's decision, if any, unless agreed to by the parties pursuant to subsection (e) below) legally binding upon each of them. In the event that either party refuses to adhere to the mediation procedure set forth in this Section 13.2, the other party may bring an action to seek enforcement of such obligation in any court of competent jurisdiction. (e) The parties' efforts to reach a settlement of any dispute will continue until the conclusion of the mediation proceeding. The mediation proceeding will be concluded when: (i) a written settlement agreement is executed by the parties, or (ii) the mediator concludes and informs the parties in writing that further efforts to mediate the dispute would not be useful, or (iii) the parties agree in writing that an impasse has been reached. Notwithstanding the fore- pdfconvert. 9450.1. cabarms_agreement_2015. doc 30 F -1 Attachment number 1 Page 110