EU Passes New Mediation Directive

As my friend Avi Schneebalg emailed me last month to let me know and the ABA Section on Dispute Resolution newsletter just posted, the EU passed a new mediation directive at the end of April.  Here’s the summary from the ABA: “On April 23, 2008 the European Parliament formally approved a Directive to promote the use of mediation. The Directive encourages access to dispute resolution by promoting the amicable settlement of disputes through mediation and ensuring a strong relationship between mediation and judicial proceedings. The Directive applies to cross-border disputes of a civil or criminal nature, where the parties attempt on a voluntary basis to reach a settlement with the assistance of a mediator. The five key provisions in the directive include; (1) an obligation for Member States to encourage the training of mediators and the development and adherence to voluntary codes of conduct; (2) gives every judge in the Community discretion to invite the parties’ – at any stage of the proceeding – to participate in mediation; (3) obligates Member States to provide a mechanism to enforce written agreements resulting from mediation; (4) provides that information given or submissions made by a party during mediation are confidential and cannot be used against that party in subsequent judicial proceedings; and (5) contains a limitation and prescription periods provision, which ensures that a party will not be prevented from access to court as a result of the time spent in mediation.” 

This is obviously not  the UMA in terms of detail but that might also be its strength.  The broad push for mediation accessibility and enforceability is impressive.  Interesting also is the application of the directive to criminal disputes. 

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