Unreasonable Refusal to Mediate: The Need for a Principled Approach
(2014) 33 Civil Justice Quarterly 261-265
University of Hong Kong Faculty of Law Research Paper No. 2014/019
5 Pages Posted: 6 Jun 2014 Last revised: 30 Jan 2015
Date Written: May 26, 2014
Abstract
This note critically analysed the English Court of Appeal decision in PGF II SA v OMFS Co 1 Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 1288, in which Briggs LJ extended the Halsey jurisdiction in the sense that the court has the power to order the successful party to pay all or part of the unsuccessful party's costs in case of most serious and flagrant failures to mediate and that silence in the face of an invitation to mediate amounts to unreasonable refusal. It argues that the decision emphasised the importance of a principled approach to explain the interrelationship among different Halsey factors and justify future amendments.
Keywords: Mediation, unreasonable refusal, costs sanction, Halsey, England & Wales
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation