What is family mediation?
Verified 08 June 2022 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
Experimentation with compulsory mediation prior to family disputes
Published on 1 January 2023
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. The scheme is extended for 2023 and has been extended to 22 courts.
However, this obligation does not apply if violence has been committed against a parent or the child.
You have a family dispute (separation, divorce, parental authority...), you have broken ties with your family, you have an inheritance dispute? Family mediation can help. It is put in place with your agreement and that of all parties in order to restore communication and to seek an amicable solution to your dispute. It can also be decided by the judge.
However, family mediation is not possible if violence has been committed.
At your request
You can try family mediation before going to the judge. In this case, your time to take legal action is suspended as of your written agreement to mediate or if there is no written agreement as of the day of your 1era mediation meeting.
Family mediation is a time of listening, exchange and negotiation in family conflicts.
Its purpose is to ease tensions and restore a fragile family bond (children, parents, grandparents, heirs...).
A qualified third-party professional, the family mediator, accompanies the families. It encourages the resumption of dialog so that the parties can reach an agreement themselves.
Family mediation can help you resolve a conflict. It is addressed to the following:
- Parent in a situation of rupture, separation, divorce
- Grandparent wanting to keep a relationship with their grandchildren.
- Person who wishes to maintain a relationship with the children of their former spouse (spouse, Civil partnerships: titleContent, common-law partner).
- Young adult out of touch or communication with family
- Heir
Please note
mediation can only begin if you are all present and have given your consent.
You cannot use family mediation if you experience violence. It is forbidden in the case of domestic violence committed within the couple or on a child.
The family mediator is a professional qualified (State Diploma).
It does not judge and has no decision-making power.
It helps you find a solution to the conflict, respecting the principles of confidentiality, impartiality and neutrality.
FYI
the principle of confidentiality does not apply in the case of compelling reasons (protection of the child, etc.) or if disclosure of the agreement is necessary for its implementation.
The Ombudsman has no powers of inquiry. However, it may, with the agreement of the parties and for the purposes of mediation, hear persons from outside the conflict such as neighbors or friends who consent.
The Ombudsman's duties may take the following forms:
- Within national or local associations
- Within the CNAF
- Liberal profession
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National or Local Mediation Association
You can go to a national family mediation association.
You can contact the court of justice or the court of appeal to obtain the list of family mediators contracted.
Who shall I contact
Family Allowance Fund
You can address a agreed family association to the CNAF.
Independent Ombudsman
You can go to a Liberal mediator qualified in family matters.
Family mediation takes place in 3 stages:
- The information interview in which the family mediator presents the objectives, content and topics that you can discuss. You can accept or refuse to engage in family mediation. This interview is non-binding.
- Family mediation interviews are conducted as follows:
- Duration of approximately 1 h 30 to 2 hours, over a period ranging from 3 to 6 months
- The number of interviews varies depending on your situation and the topics you want to discuss. It is often limited to 6.
- You're all here. In some situations, your interview may take place remotely (detention, geographic remoteness...). Your lawyers can participate in the mediation.
- If you agree, you can ask the judge to approve it. This agreement will have the same force as a judgment.
Please note
if you cannot reach an agreement at the end of the mediation, you can refer the matter to the judge.
The information interview is free.
You are then asked to participate. It's the mediator who tells you the amount he sets.
You can determine the cost allocation. In the absence of an agreement, the cost is shared equally among you.
If you are under-resourced, you can request legal aid to cover all or part of these costs.
If you use a agreed family mediation association by the family allowance fund, the amount is fixed by a scale which depends on your income.
FYI
liberal ombudsmen are not subject to a national scale, the maintenance of information also pays.
By the judge
Family mediation is a time of listening, exchange and negotiation in family conflicts.
Its purpose is to ease tensions and restore a fragile family bond (children, parents, grandparents, heirs...).
A qualified third-party professional, the family mediator, accompanies the families. It encourages the resumption of dialog so that the parties can reach an agreement themselves.
Mediation does not divest the judge. He may at any time take other measures which he considers necessary (social inquiry, psychological expertise). It may also modify the conditions exercise of parental authority.
Family mediation can help you resolve a conflict. It is addressed to the following:
- Parent in a situation of rupture, separation, divorce
- Grandparent wanting to keep a relationship with their grandchildren.
- Person who wishes to maintain a relationship with the children of their former spouse (spouse, Civil partnerships: titleContent, common-law partner).
- Young adult out of touch or communication with family
- Heir
Please note
mediation can only begin if you are all present and have given your consent.
You cannot use family mediation if you experience violence. It is prohibited in cases of domestic violence committed within the couple or on a child.
FYI
you can be dispensed mediation when you apply for the approval of an agreement or if you have a legitimate reason (geographical distance, illness...).
The family mediator is a professional qualified (State Diploma).
It does not judge and has no decision-making power.
It helps you find a solution to the conflict, respecting the principles of confidentiality, impartiality and neutrality.
FYI
the principle of confidentiality does not apply in the case of compelling reasons (protection of the child, etc.) or if disclosure of the agreement is necessary for its implementation.
The judge can decide on family mediation, even if he or she has not received your consent. It may take this decision at any time, including by interlocutory.
The judge shall appoint the mediator, the mission, its duration, the provision or its dispensation in the event of legal aid. The Registry of the Court shall notify you of this decision by simple letter. It shall also be communicated to the mediator appointed by the judge.
Family mediation takes place in 3 stages:
- The information interview in which the family mediator presents the objectives, content and topics that you can discuss. You can thus accept or refuse to engage in family mediation. This interview is non-binding.
- Family mediation interviews last from 1:30 a.m. to approximately 2 hours and take place over a period of 3 to 6 months. Their number (6 to 10 interviews) varies according to your situation and the subjects you wish to discuss: children's residence, financial contribution to their maintenance, access rights..
- At the end of his or her term of office, the mediator shall inform the judge in writing of the progress made by the parties. On the day fixed, the case comes back before the judge. If you come to a full or partial agreement, the judge can approve it. This agreement will have the same force as a judgment.
FYI
the judge may terminate mediation at any time at the request of a party, on the initiative of the mediator or of his own motion.
The information interview is free.
At the end of its term of office, where the costs of mediation are borne by the parties, the parties shall decide freely among themselves how they are to be allocated. The agreement can be approved by the judge.
In the event of disagreement, these costs shall be shared equally, unless the court decides that such sharing is unfair having regard to the economic situation of the parties.
The judge shall, where appropriate, order the payment of additional sums after deduction of the provision. It shall designate the party or parties responsible for it.
FYI
if you are a beneficiary of legal aid. the costs of mediation shall be shared equally. Your costs are borne by the State. The judge may, if necessary, decide on a different distribution (economic disparity).
Who can help me?
Find who can answer your questions in your region
- Telephone administrative information - Allo Public Service
The informants who answer you are from the Department of Justice.
Cost: free service
Service available at the following times:
- Monday: 8.30am to 5.30pm
- Tuesday: 8:30 to 12:15
- Wednesday: 8:30 to 12:15
- Thursday: 8.30am to 5.30pm
- Friday: 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m
- Family Mediation Center
- Caf Support Contact
- Point-justice
- Code of Civil Procedure: Articles 131-1 to 131-15Mediation
- Civil Code: Articles 254 to 256art. 255 divorce
- Civil Code: Articles 373-2-6 to 373-2-13art 373-2-10 violence
- Access to law and justiceService-Public.fr
- Legal aidService-Public.fr
- Civilian OmbudsmanService-Public.fr