On 20 December 2018, the Commission of UNCITRAL adopted the Model Law on International Commercial Mediation and International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, 2018 (amending the Uncitral Model Law on International Commercial Conciliation, 2002). On 20 December 2018 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the ‘United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation’. Herman Verbist provides an overview of the Convention and the amended Model Law. This contribution ends with the complete Convention in Annex.

On 19 October 2017 the TMD editorial board organised a workshop fully devoted to the (ir)relevance of best practices in mediation. The workshop, which took place in Brussels in the framework of the Belgian annual Mediation Week, was chaired by Annie de Roo and Herman Verbist who addressed the invited workshop speakers with various questions, starting with the basic, but fundamental question: ‘Is there a need for best practices in mediation?’ Followed by the question: ‘Is there a practice of mediation best practices in Belgium and the Netherlands, and if so, by whom, what are these best practices drawn up? Another question focussed on the possible link between best practices and mediation rules. Judith Simon-Emaus, director of the Mediator Federation Netherlands bureau, pointed out how best practices can contribute to furtherance of the mediator profession, which is also emphasised in her contribution ‘The MfN-register: a quality mark partly due to best practices’. Christine Jacobs, accredited mediator to the Belgian Federal Mediation Committee, approached the theme out of the perspective of the parties. She emphasised that it is essential that the mediator always takes the needs of the parties in dispute as the starting point for how to proceed in mediation. In other words, there is no such thing as a best mediation practice. She returns to this viewpoint in her contribution ‘Best prac­tices in Vlaanderen?’ A more radical stance was taken by Helena De Backer, accredited mediator to inter alia the Belgian Federal Mediation Committee and the International Mediation Institute. She is of the opinion that if mediation (profession) has a statutory basis, there is no need for best practices. Marc Simon Thomas, stresses that the purpose of introducing best prac­tices must be clear. Thus what purpose and who are served by best mediation prac­tices? In his contribution ‘The purpose and necessity of best practices in mediation based on the findings of the study ‘Peer Review and MfN accredited Mediators’ this is further reflected upon.

In this article Herman Verbist analyses the new ICC-rules of 1 January 2014. He gives a historical overview of the ICC mediation rules and reflects on the comtemporary rules based on modern mediation practices. Also he gives clear tools for mediation procedures.

Mr Ard van der Steur MP for the Dutch Liberals (VVD), has introduced three interconnected private member bills to anchor mediation more firmly into the Dutch legal system. This initiative grew out from dissatisfaction over the truly minimal implementation of EU Directive 2008/52 in the Netherlands. For one thing, the bill envisages stricter quality standards and registration requirements. Professional privilege, for instance, will only accrue to those who meet all requirements as Registermediators. Another interesting aspect of the bills concerns the duty for parties to indicate to court in the writ of summons whether mediation has been attempted, and if not, why not. If a legal question arises while a mediation is pending before a Registermediator, the latter may refer that question on behalf of the parties to a cantonal judge electronically, whereas proviso is made for the judge handing down judgment at short notice, in order not to interrupt the flow of mediation more than necessary. These are just some of the innovative aspects of the bills that are being discussed during this interview at the premises of the Dutch parliament.

On 1 January 2013 the new Mediation Rules of CEPANI (the Belgian Center for Arbitration and Mediation) entered into force. The 2013 CEPANI Mediation Rules replace the 2005 version of the CEPANI Mediation Rules and also the 2010 version of the CEPANI ICT (Information and Communication Technology) Mediation Rules. The 2013 Rules contain provisions on the introduction of the mediation, the appointment of the mediator, the mediation protocol to be established at the beginning of the mediation process, the conduct of the mediation, the confidentiality, the end of the mediation and its costs. The authors comment on these various provisions of the CEPANI Mediation Rules and explain thereby also the relevant provisions of the Belgian Mediation Law contained in Chapter VII of the Belgian Judicial Code.

This contribution examines how the Directive 2008/52/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2008 on certain aspects of mediation in civil and commercial matters is transposed in various member states of the European Union, or how the discussion about the transposition is conducted or is still ongoing in some countries. The following seven countries are examined: Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg, England, France, Germany and Austria.

This contribution examines the European Directive 2008/52/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2008 on certain aspects of mediation in civil and commercial matters and deals with the question whether the Belgian law on mediation, namely Articles 1724 to 1737 of the Belgian Judicial Code, as introduced into the Belgian law in 2005, need to be amended in the light of the Directive. It concludes that in some aspects the Belgian law ought to be improved so to implement some provisions of the Directive not yet dealt with in the law of 2005. It recommends to include in the Belgian law a definition on mediation, and also to stipulate which Belgian institution in particular shall provide the requested information on mediation and communicate with the European authorities. The contribution also suggests to consider introducing into the Belgian law a mechanism to promote mediation through incentives and/or sanctions, for which the measures recently adopted in the English legal system might possibly serve as an example.