Civilian Ombudsman

Verified 01 January 2021 - Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister), Ministry of Justice

Reform of mediation and conciliation

Published on 30 December 2021

The law of 22 december 2021 on confidence in the judiciary confers the enforceability mediation or conciliation agreements, where they are signed by counsel for all parties.

The law also creates a National Mediation Council. Its organization will be specified by an implementing decree.

The law also includes abnormal neighborhood disorder in disputes that give rise to mediation before legal action.

This page is being updated.

The civil mediator is an independent person responsible for finding an amicable solution to civil disputes: conflict of neighborhoods, dispute between landlord and tenant, etc. It is mandatory in certain disputes and the judge can impose it on the parties in cases where he considers it useful. It must validate the agreement reached between the parties with the help of the mediator.

The Ombudsman intervenes in various civil disputes in everyday life. Examples:

  • Neighborhood Conflict
  • Dispute between landlord and tenant
  • Unpaid
  • Consumer disputes

It must help the parties find an amicable solution themselves. His intervention thus makes it possible to avoid trial.

Unlike the conciliator of justice, the Ombudsman does not have investigative powers. However, for the purposes of mediation, it may hear consenting third parties with the agreement of the parties.

Civil mediation is different from criminal mediation.

Warning  

mediation is not offered to the conflicting spouses if there is spousal violence or one over the other.

The civil mediator may be:

  • a natural person
  • or a legal person (association...) represented by a natural person.

This person must meet the following conditions:

  • Not to have been the subject of a conviction, incapacity or revocation entered in the criminal record sheet no. 2
  • Not to have committed acts contrary to honor, probity and good morals
  • Have the requisite qualifications in relation to the field in which he is to be involved
  • Justify acquired mediation skills
  • Proof of its independence from the parties (no financial, family ties...).

FYI  

the ombudsman is bound by a duty of confidentiality.

Mediation required

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General case

An attempt to mediate or seek an amicable solution is mandatory for any legal claim for a dispute not exceeding €5,000 and for the following litigation actions:

  • Bounding
  • Certain easements
  • Distances from plantations (trees and hedges)
  • Respect of distances for certain constructions (for example, for a well built near a wall)
  • Ditching of ditches and canals used for irrigation of properties.

The parties shall be exempted from a prior attempt at mediation or the search for an amicable solution if they are in one of the following situations:

  • One of the parties shall apply for approval of an agreement
  • A prior appeal is mandatory
  • There is a legitimate reason for not doing so (e.g. unavailability of conciliators within a reasonable time)
  • The judge or the administrative authority must itself make an attempt at preliminary conciliation (for example, if referral to the departmental conciliation commission or the amicable appeal commission is compulsory before referring the matter to the judge)

Disputes concerning parental authority

On an experimental basis, an attempt at mediation is compulsory before any request for amendment of the approved decisions and conventions laying down the procedures for the exercise of parental authority in the courts of Bayonne, Bordeaux, Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, Évry, Nantes, Nîmes, Montpellier, Pontoise, Rennes, Saint-Denis and Tours.

However, this obligation does not apply if violence has been committed against a parent or the child.

At the request of the judge

The civil mediator intervenes at the request of a judge hearing a dispute for which mediation seems possible and desirable.

At any stage of the proceedings, the court may impose on the parties, including in interlocutory proceedings, to meet with a mediator whom he appoints.

The dispute may fall within the jurisdiction of the court of law or the local court.

Mediation does not relieve the judge in charge of the case. The latter may intervene at any stage of the procedure, including by way of interim measures (for example, to stop work).

Duration of mediation

General case

The judge shall fix the duration of the mediation and indicate the date on which the case will be recalled to the hearing.

The initial duration of mediation may not exceed 3 months. This mission may be renewed once, for the same duration, at the request of the Ombudsman.

The judge may terminate the mediation at any time at the request of a party or the mediator. It may also terminate the mediation automatically when the proper conduct of the mediation seems to be compromised (for example, if the parties cannot reach an agreement).

Final decision on parental authority

The judge is free to lay down the procedures for carrying out the mediation.

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The parties have reached an agreement

The mediator shall inform the judge of the success of his task.

The case is back before the judge. The latter then decides whether or not to approve the agreement:

  • If approved, the case is closed and the agreement becomes binding. That is, it must be applied by the parties as any judgment. For example, one party must pay compensation to the other.
  • If the judge does not approve the agreement (for example, if it is against the law), the case is tried like any other trial.

The parties did not reach an agreement

The mediator shall inform the judge of the failure of his mission.

The case comes back to the judge and it's dealt with as a classic case.

The use of a mediator is not free. The judge shall fix the remuneration of the mediator at the end of his mission.

The parties agree to apportion the cost of mediation. If they fail to agree on an apportionment, the costs shall be apportioned equally unless the judge considers that such apportionment is not equitable. In this case, it shall itself determine the allocation according to the economic situation of the parties.

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