BL Resolve - Jaunary update
mediation news
Government explore options for mediation of internet
disputes
Ed Vaizey, the minister for culture, following recent disputes
about Google Street View and invasion of privacy stated "It is
certainly worth the Government brokering a conversation with the
internet industry about setting up a mediation service for
consumers who have legitimate concerns that their privacy has been
breached or that online information about them is inaccurate or
constitutes a gross invasion of their privacy to discuss whether
there is any way to remove access to that information." The
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, confirmed that a
meeting would be set up with internet service providers to look at
options.
BL Resolve's mediation in planning
seminar
In November 2010 Leonora
Rozee OBE and Kay Powell, authors of the Mediation in Planning
report by the National Planning Forum and the Planning Inspectorate
gave a seminar together with BL Resolve planning mediator Henry
Gordon-Lennox who spoke on the practitioner's viewpoint.
View further details on the mediation in
planning seminar and a copy of the slides.
local authorities increasingly look
to mediation to resolve disputes
As tighter budgets and cuts
hit, many local authorities, like businesses have been doing for
some time, are looking at cheaper quicker ways of resolving
disputes. The recent example in Edinburgh illustrates this trend.
The City Council backed Edinburgh Trams is in dispute with its
contractor for the provision of a new tram system for the city. The
Chief Executive of the Council has now instigated a mediation
process facilitated by the council in order to try and get the
issues resolved and the project back on track.
legal updates
EU Directive on Mediation moves closer to full
implementation
The EU Mediation Directive passed the first
stage of implementation on 21 November 2010 the date by which all
member states had to have provided details of authorities who will
be responsible for enforcing mediation settlements. The deadline
for full implementation is 21 May 2011. While the majority of EU
member states, like the UK, have well established mediation
procedures, the Directive provides for mediation of cross-border
disputes and for the enforcement of any settlements reached.
is an ombudsman an arbitrator?
A recent Scottish case[1]
considered the question of the status of an ombudsman and the
process carried by out by an ombudsman in dealing with a dispute.
This was significant as under Scottish limitation law if a
complaint to an ombudsman counted as an "arbitration" then that had
the effect of extending the period in which the claimant could
bring a claim in the courts. The question has wider general
interest as the number of ombudsman schemes and other types of
dispute resolution increase. The court gave a clear judgment that
an ombudsman is not an arbitrator and that there is a distinct
difference between each type of dispute resolution process. The
judgment referred to other cases confirming, for example that
adjudication was separate from both an arbitration and an expert
determination in both rules and outcome.
notes
-
David Clark v Argyle
Consulting Limited 2010 Scot (D) 20/11[2010] CSOH
