Consultation Paper on Alternative Dispute Resolution - Law Reform ...

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CHAPTER 10 TRAINING AND ACCREDITATION OF MEDIATORS
A Introduction
10.01 In this chapter the Commission examines the accreditation and
regulation of mediators. In Part B the Commission provides a general overview
of the importance of providing adequate training and formal accreditation to
mediators. The Commission also examines the current structures in Ireland for
training and accreditation of mediators. In Part C the Commission provides a
summary of training and accreditation schemes in other States. In Part D the
Commission considers the issue of education on ADR.
B Accreditation & Regulation of Mediators: An Overview
10.02 There is currently no statutory basis for the general training or
accreditation of mediators in Ireland. Rather there is a variety of accreditation
bodies that use different standards in training and accrediting mediators. The
appointment of mediators may often be based on their professional
qualifications, such as engineers, rather than their competence in the mediation
process and mediator techniques. However, although practice as a mediator in
Ireland does not always, therefore, depend upon being formally trained and
accredited, the Commission notes that most mediators voluntarily undergo at
least an introductory training course.
10.03 The recent emergence of mediation inevitably raises issues of the
accreditation and regulation of those who mediate. Mediators are responsible
for overseeing and assisting parties in making legally binding agreements which
can have significant implications for themselves, their families, and others in
society. This is particularly true of mediated family disputes involving issues
such as custody and access to children, division of martial property, and
maintenance. 1
1 See Carey ―Credentialing for Mediators – To Be or Not to Be‖ (1995) 30 USF L
Rev 635; Sundermann ―The Dilemma of Regulating Mediation‖ 22 (1985) Hous L
Rev 841; Dobbins ―Debate over Mediator Qualifications: Can They Satisfy the
Growing Need to Measure Competence‖ (1994) 7 U Fla J L & Pub Pol‘y 95; and
Pou ―Assuring Excellence, or Merely Reassuring – Policy and Practice in
Promoting Mediator Quality‖ (2004) J Disp Resol 303.
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