Phuket lawyers push mediation as alternative to court

PHUKET: Lawyers and Phuket officials promoting mediation as an alternative to civil lawsuits held their annual informational event today to raise awareness of the option.

“The purpose of our event, Mediation 2014, is to encourage people involved in civil lawsuits to settle their cases outside of court. It tends to be a much swifter process and is offered free of charge,” Seni Chaiwooth, chief justice of the Phuket Provincial Juvenile and Family Court (PPJFC), told the Phuket Gazette this morning.

“The two types of cases that most often go through the mediation process are custody cases and divorce settlements. We want to reduce the number of cases involving families and children that go to trial.”

Between January 1 and June 30 this year, 21 cases have been sent to the Mediation Center of the Court, 14 of which have been successfully negotiated, said Mr Seni. The remaining cases are either still under negotiation or could not be settled and entered litigation.

“About half of the cases have involved Thais and the other half, foreigners,” he added.

The PPJFC has 26 mediation specialists on staff who have passed training courses and tests that qualify them to help mediate civil cases, Chief Justice Seni said.

“This year, we want to reach an 80 per cent success rate for mediated cases,” Chief Justice Seni said.

— Saran Mitrarat