From April 2013, the Government has started to reform civil litigation funding and costs in England and Wales, which is predicted to a give a significant rise in the appeal and popularity of the process of mediation.

Lord Justice Jackson, a highly experienced member of the Court of Appeal, was asked by the current Government to come up with recommendations to reform the way litigation is funded and how costs could be controlled. The resulting 584 page report identified important weaknesses in the existing structures and systems for litigation; believed to give rise to disproportionate and often unnecessary costs.

The majority of the Jackson reforms to English Civil Litigation were started to be implemented in April 2013. This will have a huge impact on how future litigation is conducted.

Lord Justice Jackson made specific reference to mediation and joint settlement meetings as being a “highly effective means of achieving satisfactory resolution”. But it was clear that smaller businesses and the general public did not appreciate the benefits of mediation.

Lord Justice Jackson noted mediation has a “significantly greater role to play in the civil justice system than is currently recognized”, summarized in his belief that “mediation has a vital role to play in reducing the costs of civil disputes. It is underused and its potential benefits are not as widely known as they should be”. Indeed Lord Justice Jackson called for a “serious campaign” to teach lawyers and judges the benefits of mediation to settle disputes.