Commercial contracts will often provide for a dispute resolution procedure.  This will frequently include provision for arbitration or adjudication but may also include earlier steps including a period of negotiation, followed by mediation, before arbitration or adjudication.

NHS Foundation Trusts, for instance, are required to enter into contracts with their commissioners for the provision of services.  The Foundation Trusts' standard contracts contain a formal dispute resolution process, which provides for 3 stages of resolution: (1) Negotiation; (2) Mediation; and (3) Adjudication.  In practice there is also an earlier stage of local negotiations.  

Even for contracts where there is no formal provision for negotiation or mediation, the parties can choose to negotiate or mediate at any time.  Although a stand-alone procedure, mediation can also therefore be combined with other dispute resolution procedures as part of a tiered dispute resolution process to provide for assisted negotiations.