Mediation Clinic Funding Success (April 2022)
Strathclyde鈥檚 award-winning Mediation Clinic has received a major grant from Scottish Government鈥檚 Justice Directorate. The 拢71,559 award means the Clinic can continue to provide a free mediation service in 18 sheriff courts; last year the Clinic received 279 referrals and provided 125 mediations under the Simple Procedure rules.
The grant, covering a 15 month period, funds a full-time coordinator and, for the first time, a sessional fee for Lead Mediators. These experienced practitioners work alongside student and assistant mediators to ensure a high quality, professional service to court users. Simple Procedure rules (for cases up to 拢5,000) require the sheriff to consider alternative dispute resolution and ensure that unrepresented people are not disadvantaged. The Clinic鈥檚 free mediation service enables litigants to negotiate a mutually acceptable resolution to their dispute, reducing anxiety and risk while freeing up court time.
The Mediation Clinic has been an innovator in online dispute resolution, providing remote mediation since mid-2020 and extending its coverage across South and Central Scotland. It was winner of the Community Contribution Award at the Scottish Legal Awards 2019 and 2021, and this new grant is further recognition of its key role in the justice system.
Charlie Irvine, Clinic Director, said 鈥淣one of this could have been achieved without the time, energy and skill of our volunteers: mediators, board members and students. I鈥檓 also grateful to the university for all its support over the past ten years. Finally I鈥檇 like to welcome our new Clinic Coordinator, Pauline McKay, and thank her for all her work as our administrator. She has made a huge contribution to the Clinic鈥檚 growth.鈥�
Dr Rebecca Zahn, Deputy Head of the Law School, added: 鈥淲inning this grant is an excellent achievement for the Mediation Clinic and is testament to the hard work and dedication of the Clinic鈥檚 Director and administrator, and all the volunteers. The Strathclyde Law School is delighted to be able to host and support the work of the Clinic which is at the forefront of providing high-quality mediation services.鈥�
To find out more about the Mediation Clinic see /humanities/lawschool/mediationclinic/
To read about the Clinic鈥檚 history see