Bryan Clark provides a backdrop to the current law & practice around compulsory mediation
- Compulsory mediation can be criticised on practical and policy grounds and significant barriers to mediation exist in legal circles and also with litigants.
- However, mediation can be successful even when parties do not enter the process under their own steam.
There have been few issues more controversial in the English civil justice arena than compulsory mediation. Over recent years, a broad range of opinions has been voiced and much ink spilt over this matter. While the official position remains in England and Wales that compulsory mediation is not sanctioned, the recent Court of Appeal case of Lomax v Lomax [2019] EWCA Civ 1467, [2019] All ER (D) 87 (Aug) has again thrust the issue into the spotlight and may be seen as a catalyst for change. This article provides a backdrop to the current law and practice around compulsory mediation in England and Wales, reviews the decision in Lomax and examines its potential consequences for mediation.
