Mediation and court

Mediation

If you haven’t resolved your problem by complaining, you could try mediation.

Mediation is where people on different sides of a dispute use an independent professional (called a ‘mediator’) to help them try and find a solution they’re both happy with. A mediator is completely neutral, so won’t take sides in the dispute.

To find out more about mediation visit ADRnow website - see Links to Other websites on the right.

Going to court

If you’re not satisfied with the result of your complaint you could think about bringing a claim in a county court (in Scotland, a sheriff court). You’d usually do this to get compensation but county courts have other powers too.

You are far more likely to get a result you are happy with if you get some legal advice and assistance in preparing your claim and someone to represent you at the hearings. But it’s hard to find help like this for free (see Where to get help).

If you can’t get help with your claim, be aware that it’s complicated and time-consuming working out what you need to prove to win your claim, getting the evidence together and following the court process on your own. Although you will be at a disadvantage if you go it alone, don’t lose heart - it has been done before!

Even if you’re not paying for a legal adviser yourself, it can still be expensive. If your claim is worth more than £5,000 and you lose, you may have to pay the legal costs of the organisation fighting your claim.

So think carefully about why you want to do this and whether it’s worth it. At the very least, it would really help to talk through your chances of success, the financial costs and other possible consequences with an adviser. See Get advice!.

Don’t forget, you will usually only have six months from the time the discrimination happened to bring a claim in a county court (or, in Scotland, a sheriff court).