The “Mediate First” Pledge is an initiative of the Public Education and Publicity Sub-Group of the Secretary for Justice's Working Group on Mediation.
A conference on “Mediation in Hong Kong: The Way Forward” jointly sponsored by the Department of Justice, the Bar Association, the Law Society, the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre, the Hong Kong Mediation Council, the Hong Kong Mediation Centre and the University of Hong Kong was held on 30 November and 1 December 2007.
Following on the success of this conference, the Secretary for Justice established the Working Group on Mediation, which is a cross-sector working group on mediation comprising representatives from the Department of Justice, the Judiciary, the two branches of the legal profession and mediation bodies as well as academic experts. The Working Group has been set up to consider and make recommendations on ways to promote and facilitate the development of wider use of mediation in Hong Kong.
Three sub-groups have been formed under the Working Group. They are: (1) the Public Education and Publicity Sub-Group; (2) the Accreditation and Training Sub-Group; and (3) the Regulatory Framework Sub-Group.
The terms of reference of the Public Education and Publicity Sub-Group are to study and to report findings to the Working Group on Mediation (WG) on:
(a) how to promote a wider use of mediation;
(b) how to promote public education on mediation; and
(c) any other issues that may be assigned by the WG from time to time.
In particular, the Sub-Group is tasked to consider, among others, the following specific issues:
- Parties who should be involved in the promotion of and public education on mediation, and their respective roles;
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whether leading corporations (e.g. commercial enterprises) should be encouraged to sign a pledge supporting the use of mediation; and if so, the way to achieve this;
the appropriate pace of promoting mediation in Hong Kong;
the types of disputes that are suitable for mediation and that are not. For those types of disputes that are suitable for mediation, whether, and how, pilot schemes should be introduced for some of them;
whether public or private funding should be provided to one or more mediation bodies to assist them in setting up dedicated centre(s) to handle mediation cases at the community level;
whether mediation should be promoted at school; and if so, how it should be done;
whether compulsory training should be provided to all practicing members of the legal profession;
whether training on mediation should be made a compulsory part of the PCLL course or of the undergraduate LL.B. (or JSD) curriculum at law schools; and
whether an API (Announcement of Public Interest) or a film should be produced for promoting mediation.
Organizations Supporting “Mediate First” Pledge Campaign
Department of Justice
Hong Kong Bar Association
The Law Society of Hong Kong
Hong Kong Mediation Council
Hong Kong Mediation Centre
The Hong Kong Federation of Insurers
The Consumer Council
Hong Kong Federation of Women Lawyers |