Gauteng High Court Mediation – How do I get accredited?

The Gauteng High Court has recently published a Directive and Protocols dealing with Mediation in that division. We have had numerous inquiries from people wanting to accredit as mediators for this Directive.

What do I need to be accredited as a Mediator for the Directive?

In order to qualify as a Mediator under the Directive you need the following:

• Be Qualified as a Mediator

You must have successfully passed a training course that is accredited either by DiSAC or NABFAM.

The DiSAC accredited training courses are listed here:

http://disac.co.za/?page_id=3513. 

The NABFAM accredited training courses are listed here: https://nabfam.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/NABFAM-ACCREDITED-COURSES.pdf 

[If you passed an unaccredited 40 hour training course, and have evidence of having  practised as a mediator, you can apply to be assessed by DiSAC or NABFAM.]

• Be a “Graduate Professional” 

The Protocol requires that accredited mediators must be “Graduate Professionals”, but does not define what this means anywhere in the document. Service Providers are also required to publish the following information about mediators on their panel:

Registered professional discipline (legal practitioner, healthcare practitioner, etc.) and whether he/she is currently, in his/her capacity as such, a practising or non-practising member of the relevant profession.

This requirement therefore seems to mean that you need to be a graduate and must be, or must have practiced in a “relevant profession” (again not defined). 

• Be on the Panel of a Mediation Service Provider that is accredited by DiSAC, or on the Panel of an Affiliated Mediation Member Organisations of NABFAM

You must be on the panel of one of the Service Providers that are accredited with DiSAC or affiliated with NABFAM.

This is important because your service provider is responsible for (i) confirming that you meet the qualification standards, and (ii) that you have agreed to practice under their practice supervision rules (Code of Conduct, Complaint and Disciplinary processes).

The DiSAC accredited Service Providers are listed here:

http://disac.co.za/?page_id=3513. 

The Service Providers affiliated with NABFAM are listed here:

https://nabfam.co.za/ 

• Meet the Mediation Experience requirement: 

The Protocol [see ANNEXURE A – MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR APPROVAL AS QUALIFIED MEDIATOR] stipulate that to qualify as a mediator you must provide evidence of at least five prior mediations in which you acted as lead mediator. You will need to provide your Service Provider with proof of this.

• Pass a skills assessment

In addition, if you want to qualify as a mediator for the Gauteng Directive, your Service Provider is required to assess your skills. They need to do this because they are required to certify that you are sufficiently qualified, skilled, and experienced in mediation practice to competently conduct court-annexed mediations in terms of this Protocol. Your Service Provider will give you guidance in how this assessment will be done.

• Personal Injury Mediations (including RAF Mediations) 

If you want to qualify to do personal injury mediations (including RAF Mediations), you require proof of additional experience or training in personal injury matters.

This requirement ensures that mediators understand the industry of personal injury matters. Those mediating personal injury matters must have a special understanding of such matters – either through practice experience in this field, prior mediation experience in this field or through proof of specialised training to mediate in this field. Again your Service Provider will give you guidance in what is required to meet this standard. 

What process do I follow to get accredited? 

You need to contact your preferred Service Provider and find out what they need from you to ensure compliance with all the above requirements.