Research on implementation of the EU Directive on civil mediation

Center for Dispute and Conflict Resolution at the Faculty of Law and Administration at the University of Warsaw presented a report with the results of statutory research  entitled “Implementation of the Directive of the European Parliament and the Council 2008/52/EC of 21 May 2008 on certain aspects of mediation in civil and commercial matters – in law and practice” carried out by the Center for Alternative Dispute Resolution at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Warsaw under the leadership of Professor T. Ereciński. The research team was composed of Dr. Ewa Gmurzynska and Dr. Rafał Morek. Members and collaborators of the Center for Dispute and Conflict Resolution participated in carrying out of the research.

The scope of the research conducted in the framework of statutory research included the following specific issues concerning the implementation of the Directive in Poland in comparison with selected EU jurisdictions:

  1. fulfillment of the obligation to inform the public about mediation and its promotion; the availability and form of publicly available information about mediation and mediation organizations in the courts, on websites or by different means (recital 13 and recital 25 of the Directive, Article 9 of the Directive in conjunction with Article 1),
  2. promoting the high quality of mediation (recital 16 and Article 4 of the Directive), including standards introduced by legislators, organizations or mediation centers, scope and duration of training, the criteria for entering on the lists of mediators, ways of monitoring the quality of mediation, professional requirements in particular mediation centers, ethical principles; research in courts – which factors the courts consider while choosing a mediator for a specific case, etc.,
  3. assessment of the implementation of the Directive in Poland – against the background of legal regulations and the state of the practice in some other EU Member States (comparative approach).