MEDIATION COMPULSORY BEFORE LITIGATION

MEDIATION COMPULSORY BEFORE LITIGATION

The Rules Board for Courts of Law will compel South Africans to declare that they have considered mediation as a solution to any forthcoming legal matter before commencing litigation steps and starting a lawsuit.
Mediation, is considered a time- and cost-effective means where parties in a dispute can appoint a qualified neutral third party to act as mediator to facilitate an agreed settlement.

The mediator facilitates discussions between the parties, assisting them in identifying issues, clarifying priorities, exploring areas of compromise and generating options to resolve the dispute. It will ease the pressure on courts, and the costs of legal representation, The new rule now requires the Attorney to declare that he has advised the client to consider mediation as a means of attempting to resolve the dispute.

Attorneys who ignore this rule may find themselves at the receiving end of a costs order. This new rule, which was published in the Government Gazette on the 7 th February will come into operation on the 9th March 2020.