Australian Capital Territory

Mediation Act 1997     No 61
Republication No 1
As in force on 17 April 2000
Includes all amendments up to Act 1999 No 66

Prepared by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel’s Office
As in force on
17 April 2000

Australian Capital Territory

Mediation Act 1997
CONTENTS
	Page 
	1	Short title	1
	2	Commencement	1
	3	Interpretation	1
	4	Declarations about competency standards and approved agencies	2
	5	Registration of mediators	2
	6	Duration of registration	3
	7	Renewal of registration	3
	8	Cancellation of registration	3
	9	Admissibility of evidence	4
	10	Secrecy	4
	11	Protection from defamation	5
	12	Protection of mediators	5
	13	Regulations	5
	ENDNOTES
	1	About this republication	6
	2	Abbreviation key	6
	3	Table of legislation	7
	4	Table of amendments	7
	5	Penalties in this republication	7

As in force on
17 April 2000

Australian Capital Territory

Mediation Act 1997
An Act relating to mediation and the registration
 of mediators
1 	Short title
	This Act may be cited as the Mediation Act 1997.
2 	Commencement
(1) 	Section 1 and this section commence on the day on which this Act is notified in the Gazette.
(2) 	The remaining provisions commence on 1 July 1998.
3 	Interpretation
(1) 	In this Act:
Note	A definition applies except so far as the contrary intention appears (see Interpretation Act 1967, s 11G).
approved agency means an entity that is declared to be an approved agency under subsection 4 (2).
mediation session means a meeting between persons who are in dispute and a registered mediator for the purpose of resolving the dispute by mediation, and includes any activity undertaken for the purpose of—
	(a)	arranging such a meeting, whether successful in arranging it or not; or
	(b)	following up any matter or issue raised in such a meeting.
registered mediator means a person who is registered under section 5 while the registration is current.
(2) 	A reference in this Act to the parties to a mediation session does not include a reference to the mediator.
4 	Declarations about competency standards and approved agencies
(1) 	The Minister may declare standards of competency required for the registration of a person under section 5.
(2) 	The Minister may declare an entity to be an approved agency for this Act.
(3) 	A declaration under this section is a disallowable instrument.
5 	Registration of mediators
(1) 	Subject to subsection (6), a person may apply in writing to an approved agency for registration under this section.
(2) 	An approved agency shall approve an application and register the applicant if—
	(a)	any fee determined by the agency to be payable to it in respect of an application under this section has been paid to it; and
	(b)	it is satisfied that the applicant has achieved the standards of competency prescribed for the purposes of section 4; and
	(c)	the applicant satisfies any requirements of the agency that relate to mediators.
(3) 	A person whose application under subsection (1) has been refused may, by notice in writing given to the agency, require it to review the decision.
(4) 	An approved agency that receives a notice under subsection (3) shall review the relevant decision.
(5) 	An approved agency shall notify an applicant in writing within 7 days of determining an application under subsection (1) or a review under subsection (4)—
	(a)	of its determination; and
	(b)	where the application has not been granted, of the grounds for not granting it.
(6) 	A person—
	(a)	who has made an application under subsection (1) that has been refused; or
	(b)	whose registration has been cancelled under section 8;
is not eligible to make another application under subsection (1) to any approved agency within 6 months of the refusal or cancellation, as the case requires.
6 	Duration of registration
	Subject to section 8, the registration of a registered mediator expires 3 years after the day on which he or she was registered or on which his or her registration was last renewed, as the case requires.
7 	Renewal of registration
(1) 	A registered mediator may, before the expiry of his or her registration, apply to the approved agency by which he or she has been registered or to another approved agency for renewal of the registration.
(2) 	The approved agency shall renew the registration of a mediator if any fee determined by the agency to be payable to it in respect of an application under this section has been paid and the agency is satisfied that the mediator—
	(a)	would, if he or she were an applicant under subsection 5 (1), be eligible for registration; and
	(b)	has, since his or her registration or last renewal, whichever last occurred, undertaken such further education in matters relating to mediation as is approved by the agency.
8 	Cancellation of registration
	The approved agency by which a registered mediator has been registered may cancel the registration if satisfied that—
	(a)	if the mediator were an applicant under subsection 5 (1), he or she would not be eligible for registration; or
	(b)	the mediator has made a disclosure in breach of section 10 and the circumstances are such that his or her registration should be cancelled.
9 	Admissibility of evidence
	Evidence of—
	(a)	a communication made in a mediation session; or
	(b)	a document, whether delivered or not, prepared—
	(i)	for the purposes of;
	(ii)	in the course of; or
	(iii)	pursuant to a decision taken or undertaking given in;
a mediation session;
is not admissible in any proceedings except in accordance with section 131 of the Evidence Act 1995 (Cwlth).
10 	Secrecy
(1) 	A person who is or has been a registered mediator shall not disclose any information obtained in a mediation session.
(2) 	This section does not apply where—
	(a)	the disclosure is required by or under a law of the Territory or the Commonwealth; or
	(b)	the disclosure is made with the consent of the parties; or
	(c)	the disclosure is made with the consent of the person who gave the information; or
	(d)	the person referred to in subsection (1) believes on reasonable grounds that—
	(i)	a person’s life, health or property is under serious and imminent threat and the disclosure is necessary in order to avert, or mitigate the consequences of, its realisation; or
	(ii)	the disclosure is necessary in order to report to the appropriate authority the commission of an offence or prevent the likely commission of an offence.
(3) 	In this section:
offence means an offence involving—
	(a)	violence, or the threat of violence, to a person; or
	(b)	intentional damage to property or the threat of such damage.
11 	Protection from defamation
	The same privilege with respect to defamation as exists in relation to judicial proceedings exists in relation to—
	(a)	a mediation session; or
	(b)	a document or other material—
	(i)	produced at a mediation session; or
	(ii)	given to a registered mediator for the purpose of arranging or conducting a mediation session.
12 	Protection of mediators
	A registered mediator has, in the performance in good faith of his or her functions as mediator, the same protection and immunity as a judge of the Supreme Court.
13 	Regulations
(1) 	The Executive may make regulations for the purposes of this Act.
(2) 	The regulations may prescribe—
	(a)	requirements to be complied with by an approved agency; and 
	(b)	penalties not exceeding 10 penalty units for failure to comply with a requirement.

ENDNOTES
1	About this republication
This is a republication of the Mediation Act 1997 as in force on 17 April 2000.  It includes all amendments made to the Act up to Act 1999 No 66.
Amending laws are annotated in the table of legislation and table of amendments.
The Parliamentary Counsel’s Office currently prepares 2 kinds of republications of ACT laws:  authorised printed republications to which the Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 applies and unauthorised electronic republications.  The status of this republication appears on the cover.
Section 13 of the Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 authorises the Parliamentary Counsel, in preparing a law for republication, to make textual amendments of a formal nature which the Parliamentary Counsel considers desirable in accordance with current legislative drafting practice.  The amendments do not effect a substantive change in the law.
In preparing this republication, amendments have been made under section 13.
Not all amendments made under section 13 are annotated in the table of amendments.  Full details of any amendments can be obtained from the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.
2	Abbreviation key
Key to abbreviations in tables

am = amended
amdt = amendment
ch = chapter
cl = clause
def = definition
dict = dictionary
div = division
exp = expires/expired
Gaz = Gazette
hdg = heading
ins = inserted/added
LR = Legislation (Republication) Act 1996
mod = modified
No = number
notfd = notified
o = order
om = omitted/repealed
orig = original
p = page
par = paragraph
pres = present
prev = previous
(prev...) = previously
prov = provision
pt = part
r = rule/subrule
reg = regulation/subregulation
renum = renumbered
reloc = relocated
R[X] = Republication No
s = section/subsection
sch = schedule
sdiv = subdivision
sub = substituted
SL  = Subordinate Law
sp = spent
*  = SL unless otherwise stated
† = Act or Ordinance unless otherwise stated

3	Table of legislation
Act†	Year and number†	Gazette
notification	Commencement	Transitional provisions	

Mediation Act 1997	1997 No 61	9 Oct 1997	ss 1 and 2:  9 Oct 1997
remainder:  1 July 1998		
Statute Law Revision (Penalties) Act 1998	1998 No 54	27 Nov 1998	ss 1 and 2:  27 Nov 1998
remainder:  9 Dec 1998 (see Gaz 1998 No 49 p 1078)	—	
Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1999
	1999 No 66	10 Nov 1999	10 Nov 1999	—	
4	Table of amendments

Provision	How affected†

s 3	am 1999 No 66 s 6 sch 3
s 4	sub 1999 No 66 s 6 sch 3
s 13	am 1998 No 54

5	Penalties in this republication
The penalties in this republication have been revised in accordance with the Interpretation Act 1967, s 63.  The value of a penalty unit for an offence against this Act at the date of publication is, therefore—
	(a)	if the person charged is an individual—$100; or
	(b)	if the person charged is a corporation—$500.
See Interpretation Act 1967, s 33AA for additional information.

This republication has been authorised by the Parliamentary Counsel and published by or on behalf of the Government Publisher

©  Australian Capital Territory 2000

The Copyright Act 1968 (Cwlth) permits certain reproduction and publication of this legislation.  For reproduction or publication beyond that permitted by the Act, written permission must be sought from the Government Printer, c/o Information Management and Libraries, Department of Urban Services, ACT Government, GPO Box 158, Canberra City ACT 2601.