New guide to using Civil Mediation

We have just published a new guide to using civil mediation for Litigants in Person and small businesses trying to resolve problems such as a breach of contract, personal injury,  a problem with a product or service that didn’t work, if you have been discriminated against by a product or service, or if somebody owes you money and is refusing to pay.

The guide explains what civil mediation is, how it works/how you use it, and helps the reader work out if mediation might help them solve their legal problem more quickly, cheaply, and easily than going to court. It also shows you how to find a good civil mediator and how fixed-fee civil mediation works and the price. The guide also looks at the small claims mediation service and helps the reader get the most out of the service and understand  if they should try independent civil mediation first, or start a small claim and use the free small claims service funded by HMCTS. 

You can use mediation before you start legal proceedings or after they have started and before the final hearing.

The guide joins our popular suite of guides that show our readers how to take a small claim without a lawyer.

This guide was written and produced by Advicenow, with funding from the Ministry of Justice.

Advicenow would like to thank all those who provided advice and feedback on this guide, particularly members of our pilot group and Margaret Doyle who peer reviewed it.