Happy Thursday, all! And happy early St. Patrick’s Day! Don’t forget to wear green so you don’t get pinched! Today I wanted to dive deeper into what it takes to be a Certified Mediator. As you know, Marcie Baker is certified by The Florida Supreme Court as a Family Law Mediator, and although we have talked about the benefits and what to expect at mediation, I want to explain why the person you are working with is qualified to be a mediator.
There is an educational requirement. The State of Florida generally requires individuals to have obtained a Bachelor’s Degree, or M.A., M.S., Ph.D., J.D., M.D., Ed.D., or LL.M. or a similar form of an advanced degree in order to be certified as a mediator. According to the Florida Supreme Court, “individuals with a bachelor’s degree may be eligible if they have completed a graduate level conflict resolution certificate program or already have extensive mediation experience.”
There is another requirement that goes beyond just obtaining certification. The Mentorship requirement means that a person who wants to be a mediator must either observe or co-mediate a certain number of cases related to the area they are hoping to be certified in. (Such as family law or workers’ comp.). The mediator who the person is observing must already be certified by the Florida Supreme Court.
A very important requirement and one that you should expect from all of your mediators is that they exhibit good moral character. This means they have to be trustworthy and ethical and have a record of engaging in such practices while maintaining their neutrality in the mediation process. Florida has a special screening process to make sure there are not any moral character issues. If the Florida Supreme Court finds such issues, an applicant may be barred from being a mediator.
See here for a breakdown of the specific requirements set out by the Florida Supreme Court.
I hope today’s post helped you better understand the role a mediator plays in your legal dispute and how they are qualified to do their jobs. Rest easy that they know what they are doing, have obtained the required certification, and will do their best to serve your needs as a neutral party during your legal dispute. As always, if you have any further questions or concerns about mediation, do not hesitate to contact our office!
Sources:
https://www.myfloridamediator.com/how-to-become-a-certified-mediator.html
***The thoughts and information in this blog in no way constitute legal advice of any form. If you have any questions or legal concerns please contact our office.
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