Mediation Confidentiality and Attorney Malpractice in California

The issue of confidentiality is central to contemporary mediation practice, yet raises significant public policy issues. The California Legislature has directed the California Law Revision Commission to analyze “the relationship under current law between mediation confidentiality and attorney malpractice and other misconduct and the purposes for, and impact of, those laws on public protection, professional ethics, attorney discipline, client rights, the willingness of parties to participate in voluntary and mandatory mediation, and the effectiveness of mediation, as well as any other issues that the Commission deems relevant,” with an eye to making recommendations for revising relevant state law. Because California is a leader in the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) domain, significant changes in its policies regarding mediation have the potential to affect mediation law in other state courts as well as in the federal court system. In this practicum students worked collaboratively with Commission staff to identify, research, and analyze issues for publicly available policy memoranda.

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Practicum students advised the California Law Revision Commission on issues related to mediation confidentiality and attorney malpractice, including in camera proceedings and evidentiary corroboration requirements.