About this Course

This ten-day course deals specifically with civil mediation. Past experience has shown that mediation is a growing area of legal specialisation and, when used appropriately, can offer a valuable approach to reduce the time and costs of litigation. Whether you wish to practise as a mediator or be in a position to advise your clients or represent them at mediations, you will benefit greatly from attending the course.

Introduction

With the formal introduction of Court-Annexed Mediation, it is in the interest of legal practitioners to familiarise themselves with the process and techniques of mediation.

In December 2014, Court-Annexed Mediation was introduced in 12 Magistrates’ Courts pilot sites (9 in Gauteng and 3 in the North West Province) pursuant to the Court Mediation Rules. In 2019, based on the lessons and experiences learnt from the pilot, the Court-Annexed Mediation services has been  extended to the Regional Courts in five provinces, namely, Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Northern Cape and Western Cape.

LEAD’s mediation courses are primarily designed to prepare legal practitioners and candidate legal practitioners to be mediators and to advise clients on the mediation process. When designing the course content, the Standards for Civil Mediation were considered.

Course presentation

Success in today’s legal environment requires mastering a variety of techniques to help clients achieve a cost-effective solution to their disputes. The course presenters are experienced, practising mediators and the teaching methodology will essentially be learning-by-doing, which will include working through case studies. The training is intensive and demanding and requires hard work and dedication. This course is presented in English only.

Outline of programme
The presenters are experienced, practising mediators and the teaching methodology will essentially be learning-by-doing, which will include working through case studies. The programme will include:

General introduction to mediation and legal background | Basic civil procedure pre-workshop assignment | Mediation in the South African context | A study of the Court-Annexed Mediation rules | The mediation process principles, stages and methodology of mediation | Role and function of the mediator | Conflict management | Essential skills in negotiation | Adversarial processes | Social-context and diversity awareness | Taking control of the mediation process | Dealing with people and building rapport | Communication and diplomacy | Gaining an understanding of the problems | Confidentiality, privacy and reporting obligations | Neutrality and impartiality | Drafting agreements at the end of the process | Skills required in moving towards a solution that satisfies the needs of the parties, and | Practical skills to conduct a mediation process

Accreditation (updated version)
The LSSA has provisionally been accredited by the Dispute Settlement Accreditation Council (DiSAC) for general commercial mediation standard training. NOTE: DiSAC is only extending provisional accreditation for this training course as it is in the process of finalising a more detailed assessment process.

Certification

IMPORTANT:
Delegates are required to attend the full ten-day (40-hour) course and comply with all assessment requirements to receive a Certificate of Successful Completion.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR CANDIDATE LEGAL PRACTITIONERS AND OTHERS:
To receive the Certificate of Successful Completion, these participants must pass a separate online multiple-choice assessment on Civil Procedure. Knowledge of Civil Procedure is a requirement in terms of the standards for Court-Annexed Mediation set by the Department of Justice.

Candidate legal practitioners registered at LEAD should use the High Court Practice and Magistrate’s Court Practice training guides to study for the test. Other participants will be expected to purchase the LEAD training guide. The online assessment date will be advised after the delegate has registered.

All practising legal practitioners and candidate legal practitioners, especially (but not exclusively) those involved in civil litigation. Registration will be confirmed on a first-come, first-served basis.

Registration fee (including VAT):

• Practising legal practitioners: R 4 770 per person
• Candidate legal practitioners and support staff: R 3 800 per person
• Non-practising legal practitioners/others: R 7 040 per person

Or

23 October – 03 November 2023 | Duration: 14:30 – 18:30

• The LSSA will not accept liability if fees are not paid into the designated LSSA bank account.
  Course registration will be confirmed only if proof of payment is attached to the registration form.
• Registrations close 48 hours prior to the event dates.No registrations will be accepted thereafter without
  written approval from LEAD.
• LEAD reserves the right to cancel a learning activity should the number of delegates not justify the costs involved.
• Registered delegates will be given reasonable notice of cancellation.
• To cancel a registration, the delegate should e-mail annelie@LSSALEAD.org.za at least 48 hours before the
  start of the event to avoid being liable for the full fee. Refunds must be claimed in writing within 15 business days after cancellation.