THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE INTENDS TO PROHIBIT LAWYERS AND NOTARIES TO ACT AS MEDIATORS

The Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation is actively working on the draft law “On the settlement of disputes with the participation of a mediator (mediation) in the Russian Federation”.

The explanatory note to the document indicates that the draft law is aimed at further development and popularization of mediation practices in Russia, will simplify the protection of the rights of both individuals and legal entities and will reduce the burden on the judiciary.

However, experts are perplexed, why the draft law contains a ban on combining the work of a lawyer and a notary with the activity of a mediator (part 5 of article 10 of the draft law).

According to the legal community, the ban on mediation for lawyers is discrimination on the professional basis and does not contribute to a legal and effective way out of a disputable situation for the parties.

Attorneys are professional lawyers with extensive knowledge of both substantive and procedural law. That is why they can be very effective mediators, but soon this possibility may disappear.

The norm is also very controversial, because the Code of Professional Ethics of a Lawyer also provides for the lawyer's desire to peacefully settle the dispute that has arisen, which, in fact, pushes the lawyer to mediation practices.

Thus, when a new draft law is adopted, it may come into conflict with already existing legal norms.