Introduction.The peculiarities of dispute resolution through mediation within individual countries may differ due to factors of not only legal, but also historical, cultural and social nature. Therefore, in the legal literature such criteria as the principles of the parties' participation in the mediation procedure, the limits of the mediator's intervention in the negotiation process, the range of dispute-related issues to be discussed by the parties are used to divide mediation into different types and kinds. Such division is of great theoretical and practical importance, as it facilitates a comprehensive study of the legal nature of mediation, its characteristic features, and its potential effectiveness for certain categories of disputes.Methods.Authorsused both general scientific (method of dialectical materialism, analysis, synthesis, etc.) and special legal methods. Results. Two main types of mediation depending on the limits of mediator's intervention in the negotiation process are studied: stimulative and evaluative. Authors argue their point of view and draw conclusions by analysing the opinions of various foreign legal scholars, highlighting the positive and negative qualities of each type. The study separately demonstrates two kinds of mediation depending on the main purpose of the parties' participation in mediation: interest-based mediation and transformative mediation. Within the framework of the work, the authors point out the existence of such separate kinds of mediation as narrative mediation, highlighting its stages, and humanistic mediation. The results of the study can contribute to the fair resolution of legal disputes, provided that the interests of the parties to the conflict are balanced. Conclusions.Types (stimulative and evaluative) and kinds (interest-based mediation, transformative mediation, narrative mediation, humanistic mediation) of mediation are identified and described.