Mediation (LAW531H1F)

The use of mediation is now widely accepted in the civil justice system as a means of resolving legal disputes, and in some Ontario jurisdictions is required by courts as a mandatory step in the litigation process. Mediators provide the valuable service of facilitating a negotiation between civil litigants to allow them to come to a speedier, less costly and more amicable resolution than is possible through the adversarial litigation process.  Mediation allows for more personalized and tailored resolutions that take into account the specific needs and interests of the parties involved and allows parties to decide their own resolution to the matter, rather than the judge or adjudicator. 

Mediation is also used in a wide variety of other forums including workplace, family, neighborhood, human rights, and community policing. This course examines the many contexts in which mediation is used to help parties to resolve conflict.  

The course will provide students with an opportunity to explore the theory and practice of mediation. Students will expand their ability to appreciate all sides of a dispute, and learn techniques for conflict de-escalation, consensus building, and resolving conflicts in a creative and efficient manner, including shuttle mediation and caucusing. Students will learn active listening, effective questioning and rapport building, along with the importance of mediator neutrality, impartiality, confidentiality, self-determination, voluntariness, and providing a safe process and environment.   

The nature of the course will be a mix between teaching and class discussions of mediation theory and methodology, and the direct application of the skills learned through role plays and demonstrations.  Three of the classes will be devoted to mediation role plays, where the students will have the opportunity to play the roles of mediator, plaintiff and defendant. Students will receive direct feedback on their performance from professional mediators.