Mediation Bill 2017 – TABLE OF CONTENTS
Mediation information sessions in family law and succession proceedings
| 23. | (1) | The Minister may, for the purposes of ensuring that information sessions concerning mediation are available (in this Act referred to as a “mediation information session”), at a reasonable cost and in suitable locations, to parties to relevant proceedings and having had regard to the matters specified in subsection (2)— | ||
| (a) | prepare and publish a scheme for the delivery of such sessions, or | |||
| (b) | approve a scheme for the delivery of such sessions prepared by a person other than the Minister. | |||
| (2) | A scheme referred to in subsection (1) may include provisions in relation to any of the following: | |||
| (a) | the nature and operation of mediation in respect of a relevant dispute; | |||
| (b) | the role of the mediator in a mediation in respect of a relevant dispute; | |||
| (c) | the types of mediation settlements available in a mediation in respect of a relevant dispute; | |||
| (d) | the benefits of mediation over court-based resolutions in respect of a relevant dispute; | |||
| (e) | the costs of mediation; | |||
| (f) | a statement that legal advice may be sought by the parties at any time during the mediation. | |||
| (3) | Before publishing or approving a scheme under this section, the Minister shall— | |||
| (a) | publish a notice on the website of the Department of Justice and Equality and in at least one daily newspaper circulating generally in the State— | |||
| (i) | indicating that he or she intends to publish or approve a scheme under this section, | |||
| (ii) | indicating that a draft of the scheme is available for inspection on that website for a period specified in the notice (being not less than 30 days from the date of the publication of the notice in the newspaper), and | |||
| (iii) | stating that submissions in relation to the draft scheme may be made in writing to the Minister before a date specified in the notice (which shall be not less than 30 days after the end of the period referred to in subparagraph (ii)), | |||
| and | ||||
| (b) | have regard to any submissions received pursuant to paragraph (a)(iii). | |||
| (4) | Where the Minister prepares or approves a scheme under this section, he or she shall cause a notice of the preparation or approval to be published in Iris Oifigiúil and the notice shall specify the date from which the scheme shall come into operation. | |||
| (5) | Subject to subsection (6), the Minister may— | |||
| (a) | amend or revoke a scheme prepared or approved under this section, or | |||
| (b) | withdraw approval in respect of any scheme previously approved under this section. | |||
| (6) | The requirements of subsections (3) and (4) shall, with all necessary modifications, apply to a scheme that the Minister intends to amend or revoke or in relation to which the Minister intends to withdraw his or her approval. | |||
| (7) | Where the Minister amends or revokes, or withdraws his or her approval in respect of, a scheme under this section, he or she shall cause a notice to that effect to be published in Iris Oifigiúil specifying— | |||
| (a) | the scheme to which the amendment, revocation or withdrawal of approval, as the case may be, relates, | |||
| (b) | whether the scheme is to be amended or revoked or whether approval in relation to the scheme is to be withdrawn, | |||
| (c) | if the scheme is to be amended, particulars of the amendment, and | |||
| (d) | the date from which the amendment, revocation or withdrawal of approval, as the case may be, shall come into operation. | |||
| (8) | In this section— | |||
| “relevant dispute” means a dispute the subject of relevant proceedings; | ||||
| “relevant proceedings” means— | ||||
| (a) | family law proceedings, or | |||
| (b) | proceedings under section 67A(3) or 117 of the Succession Act 1965. | |||
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