Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

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INTRODUCTION

On June 26, 2015 the President of Brazil sanctioned a new
Mediation Law (law no. 13.140/2015) approved by the congress
which will take effect in 180 days. This is the first complete law
passed on mediation in Brazil, although various unsuccessful attempts
have been made by congress since the late 1990s. The main issue
hampering prior passage was whether mediation should be obligatory,
as it is in neighboring Argentina.

The new Mediation Law (“the Law”) deals with at least three
different dispute resolution mechanisms: mediation of court cases
(“Judicial Mediation”); mediation of cases outside the courts (“Extra-
Judicial Mediation”); and self-resolution of the dispute when one party
is a legal entity governed by public law (“Self-Resolution of
Disputes”). Most provisions of the Law deal with Judicial Mediation
and Self-Resolution of Disputes involving public entities. Since public
entities play such a large role in the Brazilian economy and society, the
express legal authorization for them to engage in mediation and/or selfresolution
of disputes will be important. Depending on how it will be
implemented, judicial mediation has the potential to play a role in
helping to decongest the Brazilian court system of the almost 100
million cases simmering there now, many involving public entities.

The Law contains different sections dealing with Judicial and
Extrajudicial Mediation respectively as well as some sections dealing
with both aspects jointly. However, curiously, the Law does not
specifically define either Judicial or Extrajudicial Mediation. “Judicial