Court-Connected Mediation Program
Implemented in the District Courts of Durres and KorcaSupported by the Program of Strengthening the Justice System in Albania (JUST) implemented by Chemonics International through USAID funding.
This program was a continuation of the investment made in the years 2008-2010, which was implemented in accordance with the Memorandum of Cooperation with IFC, the Ministry of Justice, High Council of Justice, piloting the project "ADR/Mediation in Commercial Case Resolution.
With the support of JuST this program was implemented in the District Courts of Durres and Korca. The mediation centers´ main activity was focused on acceptance and management through mediation of family and commercial cases cases referred by the court, parties and attorney offices, etc.
Main program areas:
- Advocacy, increasing the awareness on the use of mediation service in civil, commercial and family cases and increasing the rate of successful mediated cases. About 190 participants, judges, attorneys, lawyers, notaries, civil society activists, participated in informative seminars on the advantages of mediation and the opportunities provided by the new law on mediation in dispute resolution. The meetings were held during July-October 2011.
- Capacity building in the field of mediation both for existing and new mediators: about 15 existing mediators attended a three-day advanced level training, and 40 new ones were certified upon completion of an 8-day training course of basic and advanced levels, conducted by national and international experts.
- Mediation service in family and commercial cases: During June 2011- March 2013 the Mediation Centers of Durres and Korca accepted 365 civil cases, family and commercial ones: 232 cases handled by Durres Mediation Center and 133 cases by Korca Mediation center.
As far as type of referral is concerned, family cases make the majority of cases counting for 62 % of the total (225 cases), followed by civil ones making 25 %, and commercial cases make 13 % of the total cases.
The mediation service has been successful in 261 cases or in 72% of the total cases referred. In 104 cases or 28 % of the total, the parties withdraw from the mediation procedure and restarted litigation.
The court has been the main referral source of cases. 65% of cases have been referred to mediation by the judges. Other sources of referral are attorney offices, and through increased public opinion, the number of cases referred by the parties themselves has been increasing. 28% of the total cases have been referred by the parties themselves and 21% by the attorney offices, and 1% of the cases have been referred by local NGOs.
- Promotion through print and electronic media. Articles have been published on national press, and TV talks on the advantages of mediation and the court-connected program have been broadcast on local media in Durres and Korca.