MEDIATION SERVICESMEDIATION SERVICES

Mediation Advantages

Advantages of mediation for the system

Each year, the Romanian courts settle about 2 million cases. As mediation can be applied to any civil case, an estimate of about 80% of cases brought before courts could be resolved through mediation.

Thus, cases being resolved through mediation before referral to court will decrease the number of cases pending before courts. Finally, this will lead to the acceleration of solving cases pendings in courts.

For cases resolved through mediation during trials, judges will not have to justify their solutions in detail, they will be limited to taking note of the agreement reached by the parties. In this situation only, appeals would be pointless, which will lead again to a decreased number of cases pending before courts for judicial review.

In all cases, judges will gain time leading inevitably to a decrease in time and an increased quality of the act of justice in cases that truly need the intervention of a magistrate for clarifying facts and law in a dispute.

For the overall system, this will reduce the state's expenses or the expenses will be more judiciously allocated for the remaining pending cases.

For society, mediation could lead to increased tolerance in judicial behavior and to a different approach solving litigations.

Advantages of mediation for the parties

Romanian justice system suffers from lack of uniform legislation. Because of weak laws and exacerbation of the role of judges in interpreting the law, there are numerous situations where similar actions are handled differently by judges. However, through mediation, both parties win and nobody loses.

Mediation is based upon the win-win principle, a principle according to which all parties gain something and no party loses. Speed is the main advantage of mediation compared to the classical method of solving the dispute through a dispute resolution procedure.

The law requires the payment of a stamp duty to bring an action. In addition, fees for copying files, fees for promotion review, fees for lawyers for each track promoted.

Should the judge commit errors, a retrial is required. It is difficult to estimate what the overall expenses would amount to.

Instead of these issues it is preferable to call in a mediator. This would mean lower financial costs and, most importantly, reducing time for resolving disputes and achieving satisfactory results for all parties involved.

Another advantage is that the entire procedure is taking place under the rule of confidentiality.

Thus, if mediation is successful and the conflict is resolved, a mediation agreement will be signed, confirming the will of the parties, the court having to subsequently rule on the request of the parties, based on their will.

Mediation leads to the possibility of identifying solutions that would satisfy the interests of all parties, and also presents countless advantages:

  • Parties may come to solutions appropriate to their needs, having full power of decision over the process which makes the subject of mediation;
  • Parties can negotiate convenient solutions for all those involved in the conflict;
  • It is a way to avoid court expenses, stamp duties, expert fees;
  • It is a way to save time and avoid the stress of court litigations;
  • It is a way to avoid public exposure of problems of the parties;