Russia: new rules for conciliation procedures
Conciliation procedures have been set out in detail in the Civil Procedure Code, Commercial Procedure Code and the Administrative Procedure Code. In particular:
· A new conciliation procedure, i.e. judicial conciliation, has been introduced. Judicial conciliation is conducted in accordance with the Rules for Judicial Conciliation and involving a judicial conciliator from the list drawn up by the Plenum of the Russian Supreme Court. The list consists of retired judges who have indicated their willingness to act as judicial conciliators. A candidate for the judicial conciliator role is selected by the parties and is approved by the court that is considering the case. The Rules determine the powers of a judicial conciliator.
· A court may adjourn a preliminary court hearing in order for a dispute to be settled amicably. In its ruling concerning preparing the case for judicial proceedings, the court should refer to the possibility of resorting to either a court or an intermediary, including a mediator, for the purpose of settling the dispute, or should refer to the possibility of using other conciliation procedures.
· No representatives who have been involved in a conciliation procedure and no intermediaries (including judicial conciliators) can be interrogated as witnesses about facts of the case of which such persons have become aware through their participation in a conciliation procedure.
Enforcement proceedings can be initiated based on a mediation agreement
A mediation agreement that has been certified by a notary (or a notarized copy of it) is an enforcement document. If a party to such an agreement does not perform it, the other party may go directly to court bailiffs and ask for enforcement proceedings to be initiated based on the agreement in question.
The use of conciliation procedures in administrative disputes
Formerly, in rare instances, companies concluded settlement agreements with governmental authorities, such as the Federal Tax Service or the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia. Now, such an opportunity has been enshrined at the statutory level. If parties to such a dispute did not use a conciliation procedure before applying to the court, the court, provided that a business entity grants its consent, may adjourn the court hearing, having suggested to the parties that they have recourse to a conciliation procedure.
Retired judges can be mediators
To start acting as a mediator a judge needs only to express his/her desire. They do not have to complete any further training in how a mediation procedure should be conducted, as other persons do. Councils of judges in constituent entities of the Russian Federation maintain lists of such judges.