Creation of the settlement hearing on November 1, 2023

Within the framework of Justice Action Plan a decree of july 29, 2023, created the settlement hearing in january 2023 to make justice faster and more effective. The purpose of this new alternative dispute resolution system is to resolve the dispute amicably. civil dispute between the parties involved. It will apply to proceedings instituted as from 1^er november 2023.

How is the settlement hearing going?

Summons of the parties

The summons to a friendly settlement hearing shall be made at the request of one of the parties or of its own motion by the court after having sought their opinion. Thus, the judge occupies the role of conciliator in this procedure.

The parties may be called to a friendly settlement hearing by:

• the trial judge (judges the facts and the law);
• the judge hearing the application for interim measures (judge giving an urgent decision);
• the pre-trial judge (judge responsible for the proper conduct of the proceedings).

The amicable settlement hearing shall be held by a judge other than the one dealing with the dispute.

This summons does not relieve the judge. It is a new cause for concerninstance interruption andinterruption of the expiry date of the proceedings. Consequently, where the parties are called to a friendly settlement hearing, a new period shall run from the first hearing subsequently fixed before the court hearing the dispute.

Role of the parties

During the proceedings, the parties to the dispute successively express their views and their ‘respective needs, positions and interests’.

The parties must appear in person and have the opportunity to be assisted by counsel.

Confidentiality of the procedure

What is said, written or done during the settlement hearing, by the judge and by the parties, is confidential, unless otherwise agreed by the Parties and in the following cases:

• the presence of overriding reasons of public policy or grounds relating to the protection of the best interests of the child or the physical or psychological integrity of the person;
• the need to disclose the existence or the content of the resulting agreement for its implementation or enforcement.

How does the procedure end?

The judge in charge of the settlement hearing may terminate it at any time.

At the end of the proceedings, the parties may ask the judge hearing the case, assisted by the Registrar, to confirm their agreement (in whole or in part).

The judge shall then inform the judge hearing the dispute of the end of the amicable settlement hearing and send him the minutes of agreement.