News Straight from the Dispute Resolution Commission

By Tara Kozlowski 

The Dispute Resolution Commission would like to welcome four new members to the DRC! Zachary Bolen, Ketan Soni, Jayne Zanglein, and Lisa Johnson-Tonkins have all joined the Dispute Resolution Commission for a three-year term beginning Oct. 1, 2020.

On Nov. 17, 2020, the Supreme Court amended the MSC, FFS and Clerk Program Rules to allow the parties and the mediator to excuse a party from attendance. This provision was inadvertently deleted when the Supreme Court flipped the attendance presumption in June of 2020. The amended rules went into effect Nov. 23, 2020. Please see the Supreme Court’s website for all DRC rule sets.

The Commission held a meeting via Webex on Dec. 2, 2020, and voted to approve the following modifications that will be posted for comment for a 30-day period:

  1. MSC/FFS/DCC Rule 8 will now provide for mediators to report a pending grievance to the DRC within 30 days after the response to the grievance is due to the issuing regulatory body. This provides the mediator additional time to provide timely notice.
  2. AO – A-2020 provides guidance on how mediators may respond to lienholders who inquire about a mediation.

The Commission also voted on Dec. 2, 2020, to adopt proposed amendments to the following rules and standards. The amendments below were approved by the Commission on Aug. 7, 2020, and have previously been posted for comment. All rule and standard amendments will be submitted to the Supreme Court for review in the spring of 2021.

  1. MSC Rule 8. The 6-hour legal terminology course will be a prerequisite for mediator training for all non-attorney applicants. The language defining the required threshold of work experience for non-attorney applicants was clarified and brought in line with the DRC’s Policy.
  2. MSC/FFS Rule 9. The mediator training programs will be required to provide technology training in the 40-hour training courses.
  3. DRC Rule 10. An applicant denied certification by staff will have a 30-day period to appeal to the mediator certification and training committee.
  4. Standard 3(d)(5). The new language provides that a mediator may defend themselves against a complaint filed with a professional licensing board, not just the State Bar and DRC.
  5. Standard 9. The new Standard provides an anti-discrimination clause.

Finally, the Commission has adopted new language for the Advertising Policy to provide guidance for retired judges who are advertising as certified mediators.

The Commission is currently considering providing an AO regarding signing authority for mediated settlement agreements under the recent Court of Appeals case, Mitchell v. Boswell, No. COA19-1077 (N.C. Ct. App. Nov. 3, 2020). Additionally, the Commission is looking at the enabling legislation and program rules to possibly provide for an authorized agent to sign on a party’s behalf.

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