Certification Regulations

Certification regulations in Germany

In Germany, every mediator may call himself/herself a mediator if he/she provides "suitable training and regular further training" on his/her own responsibility.

The designation certified mediator, on the other hand, has been legally protected since 2012 by section 5 (2) of the Mediation Act. Since 1 September 2017, all persons may call themselves certified mediators who can prove, by means of a meaningful certificate from a training institution

• that they have successfully completed a training course of at least 120 attendance hours
• the content of which is precisely specified by a legal ordinance
• and have mediated a practical case during the training course or within one year thereafter
• and reflected on it in individual supervision
• and submitted a written reflection/ documentation of the case.

With the successful completion of 120-hour training, you fulfil the requirements for a training course in accordance with the legal ordinance. We will certify this in the form of a certificate of completion.

After you have mediated or co-mediated a recognized case and received a certificate of supervision, CONSENSUS Campus will issue you with a certificate stating that you are entitled to use the title of certified mediator.

You are then responsible for maintaining the title in accordance with the requirements of the Certified Mediator Ordinance (ZMediatAusbV) through four further supervised practical cases and regular further training.

Certification regulations in Italy

In Italy mediation is still not a regulated profession, as everyone may call himself/herself a mediator, on his/her own responsibility, anytime he/she “brings together two or more parties with a view to the closing of a deal, without being connected to any of them by virtue of a contractual relationship, employment or representation” as stated in Article 1754 of the Italian Civil Code. The deal the mediator helps parties to close may refer to a simple contract, a complex business transaction or the settlement of a dispute of either a civil or commercial nature. In this latter field mediation gained attention in the aftermath of the so called ADR movement that took place in the USA and was regulated by the Chambers of Commerce since 1994 through their Rules for the administration of mediation proceedings. Later on, civil and commercial mediation became the subject of a specific legal provision - Legislative Decree n. 28 of March 20, 2010 (D. Lgs. 28/2010, reinstated in 2013 and currently in force) - that regulates the service of mediation of civil and commercial disputes anytime the same law mandates its undertaking as a condition to access the courts or whenever parties to a dispute voluntary submit it to mediation. While that law provision does not expressly prohibits the parties to seek the assistance of a suitable third party to help them finding a deal outside of its scope, at present virtually all civil and commercial mediation proceedings in Italy are carried out under the rules set forth in D. Lgs. 28/2010.

Those rules require the administration of mediations services be provided only by legal entities, either public or private, that are registered with the Ministry of Justice, maintain a list of appointing mediators who were trained by likewise registered mediation training organizations through courses that shall comply with regulations set forth in Ministerial Decree n. 180 of 5 November 2010 (D.M. 180/2010). Under such provisions currently those people who want to provide mediation services for the scope of D. Lgs. 28/2010 hence be recognized as certified mediators, need to prove

• that they are compliant with the general requirements for becoming a civil and commercial mediators set forth in D.M. 180/2010
• that they have successfully completed a training course of at least 50 attendance hours including a 4 hours long final exam
• the content of which is precisely specified by same D.M. 180/2010.

With the successful completion of the 50-hour training, you fulfill the requirements for a training course in accordance with the said Decree. The related certificate of completion will entitle you to apply to up to five registered mediation providers for being enlisted in their Rosters of appointing mediators in view of being selected for an actual case. Please, note many of the mediation providers will ask the applicant to shadow one or more actual cases or provide other means of evidence of your actual suitability to serve as a mediator, prior to be considered for appointment.

Having said that, full participation into the IN-Medias training program will allow those who will express their willingness to get also formal recognition as certified mediators in Italy ("Mediatore civile e commerciale") to obtain advanced status to attend - free of charge - the first available basic training course (50 hours) that will be run by C.E.M. (registered at n. 166 of the Roster of training organizations held at Ministry of Justice) in Italian and delivered once the In-Medias training will end either in person or hybrid form (depending on the pertinent health regulations in force at that time).

You are then responsible for maintaining the title in accordance with the requirements of the D.M. 180/2010 and subsequent amendments through 20 further supervised practical cases and regular further training of not less than 18 hours biannually.

Certification regulations in Hungary

• a certificate attesting a minimum of 60 hours of practical experience in accordance with the provisions of IRM Decree 63/2009 (XII.17.)

• a university or college diploma
• a written proof of five years' professional experience in your field of university/college degree
• certificate of good conduct issued by the Central Office for Administrative and Electronic Public Services
• completion of 64 hours of mediator training in accordance with the structure required by the Regulation. With the successful completion of 120-hour In Medias training, you fulfil the requirements for a training course in accordance with the legal ordinance. We will certify this in the form of a certificate of completion.
• In our experience, it is also an advantage for someone who wants to deal with conflict management to have self-knowledge or self-reflection experience, as the role of the mediator is a complex and sensitive role.

Certification regulations in Poland

In Poland to become a mediator in civil cases (including civil ones in the strict sense, family law cases, business/commercial and labour/workplace disputes) you have basically three options (assuming you are over 18 years old, you enjoy full legal capacity and full public rights, and are able to write a post-mediation report in Polish):

You may do virtually nothing but advertise yourself if you meet the above-mentioned general conditions. So far there are no formal requirements concerning qualifications to mediate civil cases in Poland.

You can however choose to sign up to a Chief Justice register in one or all of 45 District Courts as a permanent mediator which makes it more likely to receive cases referred to mediation by the court. To be listed as a permanent mediator you should:

• have knowledge and skills in mediation (no specific requirements, you can provide a certificate from this training)
• be over 26 years old
• know the Polish language
• not have been legally convicted of an intentional crime or tax offense.

You may also choose to validate your qualifications (if you haven’t done it before in any other EU country) and get certified in the Integrated Qualifications System. There you may choose between being certified as a civil, commercial or family mediator. The certifying agencies are private but the certifications are recognized by all entities, both private and public ones. It is foreseen that in 2023 the mediator certification system will become the official mediator endorsement mechanism for court referred civil cases. The certification diploma is valid in all EU member states.

Certification regulations in Ireland

Since 2006, the Mediators’ Institute of Ireland (MII) has provided self-regulation of the mediation profession through its accreditation processes.  The current membership stands at circa 750.  There are mediators in Ireland who are not members of the MII.  The Mediation Act 2017 requires that mediators provide parties to mediation with details of their training and qualifications.  The Act also allows for the establishing of a Mediation Council which will, in time, lead to the regulation of the profession through the establishment of registers of mediators eligible to practice.

The MII accredits training programmes and assessment processes so that appropriately qualified mediators may then be certified as members of MII.  The MII has an equivalence route for mediators trained outside of Ireland.  It also provides for a further recognition of practice and experience through the designation of Advanced member, as well as the option to be assessed for International Mediation Institute (IMI) membership.

To be initially accredited as a mediator through the MII, people are required to:

• have successfully completed a training course of at least 60 hours, the content of which is specified by MII Certified Competences
• mediated an assessed and video recorded role play case at the end of the training course or within two years;
• reflected on their performance in the role play case themselves; and
• submitted a written reflection of the case to the assessor with key documentation (Agreement to Mediate and Mediation Settlement).

To practice in Separating Couples mediation, MII members must complete an additional 40 hours training and 20 hours of reflection, out of class work and assessment.

On successful completion of the EU In-Medias 120-hour training, you fulfil the equivalence requirements for application to complete an MII role play assessment and submit documentation in line with the requirements of the Mediation Act 2017 and the MII Code of Ethics. On submission of your In-Medias training certificate of completion within three years, you may then apply to undertake the MII assessment. 

After you have successfully completed the MII role play assessment, you will be able to apply for membership of the MII.  Once you do that, you will receive a practising certificate to mediate in Ireland and will be required to meet the insurance, Code of Ethics and Continuous Professional Development (CPD) requirements as a member of the MII.

Certification regulations in Portugal

In Portugal, a person may request registration in the list of private mediators, if he/she meets, cumulatively, the following requirements:

• Is in full possession of his/her civil and political rights

• Has successfully completed a mediation approved training course

• Has the command of the Portuguese language.

The requirement regarding the mediation training course is fulfilled if the mediator takes a course organized and lectured by a training entity certified by the Portuguese Ministry of Justice, as ICFML is. After successfully completing the IN-MEDIAS training program, the participants interested in completing a mediation approved training course in Portugal to require the registration as a mediator in this country, must complete a practical case or video simulation in Portuguese that will be made available by ICFML in specific dates.