CJI Survey

90-Second Member Survey of Mediation Preferences

SURVEY COMPLETION INSTRUCTIONS

Please take a moment to complete the following survey by June 30, 2017. It will require no more than 3 minutes of your time. These anonymous responses regarding your preferences in the use of court-ordered mediation will be used in a project of the Colorado Judicial Institute to draft a Mediation Best Practices Guide for Use in the Colorado Courts to be published in spring 2018. Your responses will be valuable input to make the Guide a useful and practical resource.

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* 1. What is your primary practice area?

Family Law

Construction Law

Probate Law

Commercial Law

Personal Injury

Real Estate

Labor & Employment

ADR

Other

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* 2. What is the primary geographical region your practice?

Metro Denver

Eastern Plains

Northern Colorado

Western Slope

Southern Colorado

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* 3. When a court orders mediation, how do you prefer to select a mediator?

Agreement among counsel, without any input from the court

Agreement among counsel after court order designating mediation model or organization

The parties and/or counsel, after referral by the court to lists or organizations of approved mediators

Court order of specific mediator

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* 4. What is the primary criteria you use when selecting a mediator for your case?

A mediator who has been successful in prior cases, regardless of the mediator’s expertise in the area of the issues of fact

A mediator who has expertise in the area of the issues of fact

A mediator who has an expertise in the issues of law in dispute

Expertise in specific mediation model (e.g. facilitative, transformative, or evaluative/directive)

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* 5. At the conclusion of the mediation, how do you prefer the Certificate of Mediation Compliance to be drafted?

Mediator uses JDF 1119 Certificate of Mediation Compliance

Mediator to draft his/her own Certificate of Mediation Compliance form without input from counsel

Mediator to draft his/her own Certificate of Mediation Compliance form with approval as to form by counsel

Each counsel to prepare a draft Certificate of Compliance submitted to the mediator

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* 6. How much time should be scheduled to make a mediation efficient and effective?

Two hours

Half day

Two separate sessions

Cannot answer- depends on too many variables in each case

I let the parties determine the amount of time they want to spend in mediation

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* 7. Have you had any formal ADR training or have you taken any CLEs in the use of ADR?

Yes

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* 8. Domestic Relations Cases -If Family Law/Domestic Relations is your primary practice area, please Answer questions 8-11. Otherwise, skip to 12.

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* 9. At what stage of the case is it most effective to commence mediation?

As soon as the case is at issue - before the parties ever appear in court

Immediately following a status conference or other interim point, but before the matter is set for a hearing

Only after all discovery is completed

At a time soon before a scheduled hearing

Depends on the complexity of the case

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* 10. Have you found mediation prior to a temporary orders hearing to be:

More successful than mediations for the permanent agreement?

Less successful than mediations for the permanent agreement?

About the same as mediations for the permanent agreement?

There is no particular pattern?

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* 11. If the parties have mediated temporary orders, whether successfully or unsuccessfully resolving issues, have you found that mediation of the permanent agreement is:

More likely to resolve all issues

Less likely to resolve all issues

Has no effect on the success of resolving issues at the subsequent mediation

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* 12. When the parties fail to complete court-ordered mediation, which of the following court imposed sanctions have you seen to be effective to bring the parties back to the table:

The judge vacates the scheduled hearing

The judge sets a hearing to determine why the parties have failed to complete mediation

After a hearing on the issue of the failure to complete mediation, the judge holds one or both of the parties in contempt

No sanctions are effective

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* 13. Civil Cases (Including Probate)-If Civil law including Probate is your primary practice area, please Answer questions 14-15.

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* 14. At what stage of the case is it most effective to commence mediation?

As soon as the case is at issue - prior to the completion of mandatory disclosures

As soon as the case is at issue - after the completion of mandatory disclosures, but before the commencement of other discovery

During the discovery phase of the case

After discovery has been completed

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* 15. When the parties fail to complete court-ordered mediation, which of the following court imposed sanctions have you seen to be effective to bring the parties back to the table:

The judge vacates the trial

The judge sets a hearing to determine why the parties have failed to complete mediation

After a hearing on the issue of the failure to complete mediation, the judge holds one or both parties in contempt

No sanctions are effective

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* 16. Please provide any comments or suggestions you have regarding the use of mediation, settlement conference, or other method of dispute resolution in court cases in Colorado.