The mediator is the people who have been registered in the Ministry of Justice Mediation Register by being successful in the written and oral exams that they graduated from the law faculty according to the legal regulations and who have at least 5 years of work experience and who have at least 65 hours of training. Mediators are not government officials, lawyers, psychologists or social workers. Mediators are obliged to strictly abide by the professional principles and rules, specially trained in the fields of negotiation, psychology, sociology and communication, and are equipped with legal competence because they are law graduates. The mediators are the people who contribute to the communication and manage the negotiations that enable the parties to communicate and protect their interests in the best way and contribute to the production of their own solutions through this channel. Mediators do not take party and they do not have responsibilities and powers such as justifying or accepting the views of one of the parties and investigating and responding to the causes of the events.
Who is the mediator and which tasks dose he/she have?
Mediation has been defined in the Act as “a voluntary dispute resolution method implementing systematic techniques, enabling a communication process between parties and bringing them together for the purpose of negotiating, reaching an understanding and creating their own resolution, conducted with the assistance of an impartial and independent third person who has relevant expertise training.” Mediators are defined in the Act as real persons conducting mediation who are registered with the mediator registry of the Ministry of Justice. Requirements for registration include Turkish nationality, a degree in law and a minimum of five years legal practice as well as completion of the relevant mediation education program and success in the exams to be held by the Ministry of Justice.
Is there something prohibited for mediators? Do they have all the power?
Mediators are prohibited from actions that exclusively fall within the judicial authority of a judge, such as site examination, consulting experts or hearing witnesses. Mediators are not allowed to provide legal or professional advice to the parties; develop and impose or force to accept proposals, agreements for the resolution. The mediator is however entitled to inform one of the parties of a proposal made by the other party and receive the relevant party´s opinion thereon. They are also entitled to recommend parties to revert to other means of dispute resolution.
In the case of a company we advise, our law firm’s approach is to take precautionary measures to protect the interests of our clients before disputes or conflicts arise. At this point it is important to ensure coordination with our office regarding the work and transactions to be carried out by the client company.