P.B. 04-013 | The Actual Judicial Reform Act

[ConsequencesInc]

A
BILL
TO
Actually Reform the Judiciary​

1 - About this Act
(1) This Act
(a) may be cited as ‘The Actual Judicial Reform Act’ or "The AJR Act".
(b) may be numbered as P.B.04-013.
(c) shall be enacted upon being publicly assented.
(d) has been authored by Member of Parliament, ConsequencesInc.
(e) has been co-sponsored by


2 - Definitions

(1) The following are definitions to be used for the The Actual Judicial Reform Act:

(a) "Mediation" is a structured process whereby a dispute between parties is moderated by a neutral third-party called a mediator. The parties and mediator agree upon the rules, standards and procedure for the mediation and work towards a mutual resolution of the matter at hand. The results of mediation are non-binding and depend upon the mutual agreement of both parties.

(b) "Arbitration" is similar to mediation, with the difference being that the final result of the Arbitration is binding and the parties go into arbitration agreeing that the decision of the Arbitrator is final. The parties and arbitrator will agree to the rules, standards and procedures for the arbitration process and at the end of the process the Arbitrator will provide a final, binding agreement on the dispute at hand.

(c) "Med-Arb" is the combined process of Mediation and Arbitration, whereby both mediation and arbitration are considered, usually with mediation occurring first and moving to Arbitration if necessary.

(d) "Mediator", "Arbitrator" or "Arbiter" refers to the individual or organization that will provide Med-Arb services for the courts on a per-case basis. Mediators are a neutral third-party who provide conflict resolution. A mediator usually has legal experience or is a lawyer, but this is not a requirement. During arbitration, they are often referred to as an Arbitrator.

(e) "Court-managed list of available mediators" refers to a document that the courts maintain of active and willing mediators who are willing to provide Med-Arb services. This document should also contain regularly updated information regarding the mediator's conflict of interests so that magistrates and chancellor's can appoint a neutral mediator as necessary to a case.


3 - Mediation-Arbitration for Civil Cases

(1) For all Civil Litigation filed in the Magistrates or Chancery, once all parties are present, the presiding judge shall offer free Med-Arb services to resolve the matter at hand outside of a full legal proceeding.

(a) If both parties agree to Med-Arb, the presiding judge shall appoint and summon a mediator from a court-managed list of available meditators.

(i) The Judge shall stay the case until further updates are given by the mediator regarding the outcome of the Med-Arb process.

(b) If one or more parties do not agree to Med-Arb services, the trial will proceed as normal.

(2) The Med-Arb process will be done privately behind closed doors, and the rules and standards by which the mediation and arbitration happen and occur will be mutually agreed to by both parties and the mediator, and enforced by the mediator.

(a) The rules and standards by which the parties and mediator agree to the Med-Arb process will constitute a legally binding agreement.

(i) If an agreement cannot be reached between the parties and mediator to mediate or arbitrate the issue at hand, the Med-Arb process will discontinue and the case will return to the courts.

(b) The mediator will provide weekly updates to the court regarding Med-Arb process, specifically if the process is continuing and if the parties are actively engaging in the process.

(i) The mediator may not disclose any other details of the Med-Arb process without the consent of both parties involved except as previously mentioned.

(c) If the parties come to an agreement through mediation, the mediator will report to the court that the case has been mutually settled by the parties and that the case can be dismissed with prejudice.

(d) If the parties come to an agreement through arbitration, the mediator will report to the court that the case has been settled by binding arbitration and that the case can be dismissed with prejudice.

(e) The parties involved waive all rights to appeal by going through with Med-Arb, unless there was fraud or the agreement established in part 2(a) of this section allows for appeals.


4 - Fees for Civil Filings

(1) The courts shall institute and collect a civil court filing fee of no more than £50 to help pay for and fund the Mediation and Arbitration services.

(i) The courts reserve the right to lower or waive the court filing fee in cases where the fee would be an undue financial burden upon the filer.

(2) The courts shall provide fair compensation to mediators and arbiters who provide their services, both for failed and successful Med-Arb services as the courts see fit."


5 - Severability

(1) The provisions of this act are severable. Should one part of it be declared unconstitutional, it shall not affect the parts which remain.

 

[ConsequencesInc]

IGNITE
Through Their Member of Parliament ConsequencesInc
MOVES TO PASS
The Actual Judicial Reform Act​

The Parliament observes the facts below:
(1) Recognizing that expediency and resolution of civil legal disputes is important and that the court wishes to reduce the number of cases that could be resolved outside of court, the Chancery and Magistrates Court shall offer free combined mediation and arbitration (Med-Arb) services as an alternative to a trial for dispute resolution.

Based on this, the Parliament decides:
(1)To pass the Actual Judicial Reform Act to give free mediation-arbitration services for civil cases.

To fulfil this, Parliament projects the following expenses:
(1) Collected court fees from civil cases
(2) Possible redirection of judiciary budget to these services.

Further, Parliament projects the following administrative efforts:
(1) The Judiciary, or the MoJ, keeping a list of available qualified mediators/arbiters available to serve the court.
(2) Determining a fair market value for the services mediators and arbiters can provide.

A
BILL
TO
Actually Reform the Judiciary​

1 - Definitions

(1) The following are definitions to be used for the The Actual Judicial Reform Act:

(a) "Mediation" is a structured process whereby a dispute between parties is moderated by a neutral third-party called a mediator. The parties and mediator agree upon the rules, standards and procedure for the mediation and work towards a mutual resolution of the matter at hand. The results of mediation are non-binding and depend upon the mutual agreement of both parties.

(b) "Arbitration" is similar to mediation, with the difference being that the final result of the Arbitration is binding and the parties go into arbitration agreeing that the decision of the Arbitrator is final. The parties and arbitrator will agree to the rules, standards and procedures for the arbitration process and at the end of the process the Arbitrator will provide a final, binding agreement on the dispute at hand.

(c) "Med-Arb" is the combined process of Mediation and Arbitration, whereby both mediation and arbitration are considered, usually with mediation occurring first and moving to Arbitration if necessary.

(d) "Mediator", "Arbitrator" or "Arbiter" refers to the individual or organization that will provide Med-Arb services for the courts on a per-case basis. Mediators are a neutral third-party who provide conflict resolution. A mediator usually has legal experience or is a lawyer, but this is not a requirement. During arbitration, they are often referred to as an Arbitrator.

(e) "Court-managed list of available mediators" refers to a document that the courts maintain of active and willing mediators who are willing to provide Med-Arb services. This document should also contain regularly updated information regarding the mediator's conflict of interests so that magistrates and chancellor's can appoint a neutral mediator as necessary to a case.


2 - Mediation-Arbitration for Civil Cases
(1) For all Civil Litigation filed in the Magistrates or Chancery, once all parties are present, the presiding judge shall offer free Med-Arb services to resolve the matter at hand outside of a full legal proceeding.

(a) If both parties agree to Med-Arb, the presiding judge shall appoint and summon a mediator from a court-managed list of available meditators.

(i) The Judge shall stay the case until further updates are given by the mediator regarding the outcome of the Med-Arb process.

(b) If one or more parties do not agree to Med-Arb services, the trial will proceed as normal.

(2) The Med-Arb process will be done privately behind closed doors, and the rules and standards by which the mediation and arbitration happen and occur will be mutually agreed to by both parties and the mediator, and enforced by the mediator.

(a) The rules and standards by which the parties and mediator agree to the Med-Arb process will constitute a legally binding agreement.

(i) If an agreement cannot be reached between the parties and mediator to mediate or arbitrate the issue at hand, the Med-Arb process will discontinue and the case will return to the courts.

(b) The mediator will provide weekly updates to the court regarding Med-Arb process, specifically if the process is continuing and if the parties are actively engaging in the process.

(i) The mediator may not disclose any other details of the Med-Arb process without the consent of both parties involved except as previously mentioned.

(c) If the parties come to an agreement through mediation, the mediator will report to the court that the case has been mutually settled by the parties and that the case can be dismissed with prejudice.

(d) If the parties come to an agreement through arbitration, the mediator will report to the court that the case has been settled by binding arbitration and that the case can be dismissed with prejudice.

(e) The parties involved waive all rights to appeal by going through with Med-Arb, unless there was fraud or the agreement established in part 2(a) of this section allows for appeals.


3 - Fees for Civil Filings

(1) The courts shall institute and collect a civil court filing fee of no more than £50 to help pay for and fund the Mediation and Arbitration services.

(i) The courts reserve the right to lower or waive the court filing fee in cases where the fee would be an undue financial burden upon the filer.

(2) The courts shall provide fair compensation to mediators and arbiters who provide their services, both for failed and successful Med-Arb services as the courts see fit."


4 - Severability
(1) The provisions of this act are severable. Should one part of it be declared unconstitutional, it shall not affect the parts which remain.