I avoid litigation whenever reasonably possible.  Yes, I'm a lawyer; I <em>can</em> litigate, and when I do I usually win; but most folks, in most situations, get more of what they really want through negotiation and compromise than they can by fighting.

[warning]Litigation is obscenely expensive, horribly unpredictable, and, usually, damned ugly for the participants.[/warning]

Litigation is a fight – a very formal, supposedly polite fight, but a fight nonetheless.  Fighting leads to more fighting; negotiation and compromise lead to more cooperation.  Most of the time, we get more of what we want through cooperation.

Some lawyers really love to litigate, and we need enthusiastic litigators for those cases where no compromise is possible; but  I prefer to settle cases whenever possible.