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Almost six out of every ten cases managed by the Center de Mediació de Catalunya ends with a satisfactory agreement for the parties. This is data collected between 2019 and last year; the best of the last 10 years. Mediation is always a voluntary process accompanied by the assistance of a professional (mediator) who facilitates the rapprochement of the parties until a satisfactory agreement is reached.
It is an option in conflicts of different types, but very common, and is an alternative to the judicial process. For example, family conflicts in separation processes, care for the elderly or inheritances. Also in coexistence conflicts between neighbors: due to noise, disputes over rent or the use of common spaces on the property. Mediation in the business field also allows for the resolution of disputes involving family businesses or foundations, among others. Of the more than 3,500 cases that the service handled last year, the majority were about family conflicts, especially economic ones. Secondly, they were processes related to child custody.
Apart from leaving behind the conflict situation that distresses the parties, experience shows that mediation is a restorative process, which helps digest the discomfort generated by the confrontation. According to the director of Dret, Entitats Jurídiques i Mediació, Imma Barral, mediation avoids the judicial process, because “it addresses the conflict from the root and reaches more lasting solutions, since they arise from the agreement of the parties and not from the imposition of a third party. ”. And this, according to Barral, "promotes peaceful and dialogued coexistence and is less harmful to the opposing parties." In addition, "the process is faster and cheaper." It is for all these reasons that the Department of Justice, Rights and Memory promotes the national plan for mediation and adequate management of conflicts, which will end during next year.
According to the Minister of Justice, Drets i Memòria, Gemma Ubasart i González, the plan wants to promote mediation in conflicts, with the help of empathy, dialogue and the culture of peace. The intention is to "address them in a more mature way and resort to the courts only as a last resort." For the councilor, “better conflict management strengthens coexistence and social cohesion in the country.”
To carry out this project it is essential to do it hand in hand with all the actors. For this reason, the Department has initiated contacts with the different mediation or similar services of the Generalitat but also with professional associations, the local world, the economic, social and community fabric, as well as with the contributions of experts. In addition, the Department is promoting an awareness campaign to raise awareness of mediation among citizens, under the motto "When we understand each other, we find the solution."
In parallel, the Government will soon approve the Mediation Law, which will regulate mediation, conciliation, collaborative law and assisted negotiation.
The Media Center of Catalonia collaborates with several schools, which have professionals trained in mediation. Currently, there are more than 800 accredited professional mediators, who are the people who accompany the processes and help the parties find an agreement through dialogue. They are impartial figures and work confidentially.
Today, the service is a reference center awarded with the ADR European Awards from the European Federation of Lawyers.
