2.Main Content
1998 Central London County Court
This page contains an outline of this research, and a summary of the key findings. Details of how to find the full report can be found at the bottom of the page.
Title
“The Central London County Court – Pilot Mediation Scheme Evaluation Report”, Lord Chancellor’s Department Research Series No. 5/98
What is it about?
In 1996 judges in the Central London County Court (CLCC) established a two-year pilot mediation scheme for non-family civil disputes with a value over £3,000. The aim of the scheme was to offer a three-hour session with a trained mediator, and to explore whether disputes could be resolved at an early stage, with a reduction in legal costs, using an informal process that parties might prefer to court proceedings. It was also thought that mediation would achieve savings in Legal Aid. Details of the scheme can be found on Central London County Court.
Who did it?
The evaluation was conducted by Professor Hazel Genn of University College London, and was commissioned by the Lord Chancellor’s Department (now the Department for Constitutional Affairs). It was based on:
- data collected from hundreds of court files of mediated and non-mediated cases.
- interviews with litigants, solicitors and mediators.
- observation of mediation sessions.
The data was collected over the first two years of the mediation pilot, and the report was published in July 1998.
Key findings
Demand
- The rate at which both parties accepted mediation offers remained at about 5% throughout the life of the scheme, despite vigorous attempts to stimulate demand.
- Demand was virtually non-existent among personal injury cases, although these comprised almost half of the cases offered mediation.
- Contract, goods/services disputes and debt cases had the highest levels of demand although the joint acceptance rate was less than 10%.
- The joint demand for mediation was lowest when both parties had legal representation.
Interviews with solicitors rejecting mediation revealed:
- lack of experience and widespread ignorance of mediation among the legal profession
- apprehension about showing weakness through accepting mediation
- evidence that litigants resisted the idea of compromise, particularly in the early stages of litigation
Outcomes
- The majority (62%) of all types of mediated cases settled at the mediation appointment
- Where the plaintiff had Legal Aid the settlement rate was lower than average.
- The settlement rate at mediation was highest (72%) when neither party had legal representation at the mediation.
- Mediated cases had a much higher settlement rate overall than non-mediated cases, whether or not settlement occurred at the mediation appointment. This indicates that mediation promotes settlement even after a mediation appointment where no agreement was reached.
- Average levels of settlement in mediated claims were £2,000 lower than in non-mediated settlements or court awards.
Time and cost
- Mediated settlements occurred several months earlier than among non-mediated cases.
- Only half the plaintiffs settling at mediation believed they had saved costs.
- There was a common view that failure to settle at the mediation appointment led to increased costs.
The mediation process
The characteristics most valued by litigants were:
- the opportunity to state their grievance and focus on the issues in the disputes.
- fully to participate in a process relatively free from legal technicality.
- the qualities of the mediators.
Solicitors particularly welcomed:
- the speed of the process.
- the opportunity to review the case with a neutral party.
- the concentration on commercial realities.
- the opportunity to repair damaged business relationships.
Negative assessments by parties centred on:
- deficiencies in mediator's knowledge of the law and issues in dispute.
- undue pressure to settle and bullying by mediators.
- mediators being insufficiently directive.
Issues highlighted in the report:
- Mediation can magnify power imbalances and works best in civil disputes when there is some rough equality between the parties or in representation.
- Demand for mediation is very weak and the legal profession has a crucial role in influencing demand.
- Mediator training, quality control and accountability all need attention.
- Mediation should not be limited to simple or straightforward cases.
- Mediation currently operates in the shadow of normal litigation procedures and the disadvantages of those procedures provide much of the incentive for parties to settle during mediation.
Key websites
Central London County Court research
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