Originally from Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation

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The United Kingdom’s moves to make mediation mandatory in the nation’s courts took a step forward this spring. The target is small claims.

On May 22, 2024, the U.K. Ministry of Justice signed the 166th Practice Direction update to the nation’s Civil Procedure Rules 1998, “Practice Direction 51ZE–Small Claims Track Automatic Referral to Mediation Pilot Scheme.” (It can be found at https://bit.ly/46tV4dv.) The pilot mandates mediation sessions for monetary claims under £10,000 in the Small Claims track once the case is allocated to that path.

This is the natural next step to the U.K.’s Civil Justice Council’s controversial June 2021 report on conflict resolution processes (see “Making It Mandatory: The U.K.’s Slow, and Definitive, Move to Compulsory ADR,” 39 Alternatives 134 (September 2021)). In the wake of that report, the U.K. government published a post-consultation report on Dec. 20, 2023, confirming the government’s intention to fully integrate mediation into civil claims court processes valued up to £10,000. (See the consultation reports at https://bit.ly/4d5pQvI).