10/07/2022
The latest news on a Mediation field.
From 1 September 2021, Judge President Makgoba's directive on Rule 41A of the Uniform Rules of Court compels legal practitioners to mediate before the High Court will hear matters. Where the rule has not been complied with, matters are struck from the roll.
On the 1st and 8th of June 2022, the SA Law Reform Commission held what seems to be its final round of stakeholder consultations on the ADR in Family Matters discussion paper 148.
The intent of the Family Dispute Resolution Bill is to mandate mediation (as with Rule 41A), but focused specifically on family disputes (i.e. divorces, parenting plans, etc.) across not just the 13 High Courts, but also the 524 Lower Courts. "The proposals therefore include, amongst others, the mandatory attendance by the disputing parties of a standardised information and education programme, as well as a mandatory mediation session, before a court process may be initiated." (extract from the SALRC's media statement). The newest media statement reinforces this intention.
