Originally from Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation

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The Maryland Court of Appeals adopted new standards of conduct for court-appointed and non-court-appointed mediators, effective Jan. 1, 2020. Although the new practice standards are the same for both groups, different links appear on the Maryland Judiciary’s website: for court-designated mediators at http://bit.ly/2FCBIY9, and for non-court appointed mediators at http://bit.ly/2tMLeVV.

While the new standards reconcile and consolidate two different sets of practice standards that applied to mediations inside and outside of court programs, a few significant issues remain unaddressed and unclear, rendering some provisions impractical and unworkable in commercial mediation— especially injury cases.

Notably, many commercial mediation practitioners in Maryland do not support the new standards.