Mediation as a Calling: Addressing the Disconnect between Mediation Ethics and the Practices of Lawyer Mediators
11 Pages Posted: 15 Nov 2015
Date Written: 2008
Abstract
The purpose of this essay is to outline a problem that I believe we face in lawyer-mediated cases, speculate about the causes of the problem, and tentatively and cautiously suggest possible solutions. The problem is the apparent disconnect between mediation’s core values as expressed in most, if not all, of the mediator standards of conduct, and the predominant practices of lawyer mediators.
Mediator ethics has become a subject of widespread attention. Interest in developing appropriate standards of conduct for mediators has been fueled by the increasing popularity of court-sponsored mediation programs during the final decade of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first. Courts, both state and federal, in several jurisdictions, have promulgated mediator ethics rules to regulate the behavior of court-appointed mediators; these rules often borrow “language from standards of conduct for mediators that had been developed by professional organizations and ADR [Alternative Dispute Resolution] practitioners.” In some states, state bar associations or ADR organizations have published statewide standards.
Keywords: Mediation, Ethics
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