Six Constraints and Preconceptions of Mediation - Does Mediation Change the Common Interpretative Framework (Paradigm) in Private Law?

Abstract

In this article, I take mediation as an example of multidisciplinary legal research. My starting point is that legal research, whether classical-doctrinal or multidisciplinary, is not an exception to the generally accepted view that all research in all sciences somehow suffers from tunnel vision. However, in promoting mediation as an alternative to adjudication in private law, this generally accepted view is often forgotten. In this article, I will identify six constraints and preconceptions of mediation. Insight into these limitations are of crucial importance to determine the contribution mediation can make, not only to the improvement of resolving legal conflicts/disputes, but also, and even more importantly, to the dispute on changing the current interpretative framework (paradigm) of legal research.