An examination of the impact of mediation as a dispute resolution mechanism, a case study of Uganda
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Date
2019-06
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kampala International University, School of Law
Abstract
Dispute settlement is usually considered as an important issue in majorly commercial Transactions for disputes is an avoidable. In the modern era, court litigation was considered to be the main and inherent dispute resolution mechanisms including civil and criminal disputes.
Contrary to the needs of civil and criminal disputes, however; Court litigation is generally characterized by, among others, cost inefficiency, adversarial nature and delay. Consequently, modern alternative dispute settlement mechanisms are becoming more popular in resolving disputes. The primary choice for civil disputes has been modern arbitration. But modern arbitration is also becoming more adversarial, costly and lengthy. Therefore, more flexible interest based Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanisms like mediation is becoming more important to resolve disputes. For some time, Uganda has been suffering from the systemic inefficiency of their Courts, with a significant impact on the guarantee of access to justice for their citizens, making alternative dispute resolution a constant presence in both civil and common law systems of the count1y. The upshot has been the institutionalization of ADRs, taking the form of a routine presence in the civil procedure code, while their practice is connected to the courts. However, both institutionalization and the obligation to take part in mediation programs before or after starting the suit are exceptional measures, which must be adopted with caution Using both qualitative & quantitative methodologies as well as primary & secondary data, the research examines the impact of institutionalizing mediation in Uganda and the needs to further modernize and institutionalize it to resolve disputes. The research recommends, among others, the need to reconsider the policy to institutionalize mediation on the side of the government; undertaking various legal reforms, strengthening and expanding existing court annexed mediation centers, increasing accessibility of chamber mediation in the country, establishment of new mediation centers and the need to consider establishing a regional mediation center in Kampala and other major towns in the country.
Description
A Research Report Submitted to the School of Law in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of Bachelor of Laws Degree of Kampala International University
Keywords
Mediation, Dispute resolution mechanism, Uganda