Florida Supreme Court Mediator Ethics Advisory Committee (MEAC) / Florida

CAN A MEDIATOR SERVE WHEN PERSONALLY INVOLVED WITH THE LAWYERS OR PARTIES?

The committee treated the relationships as clear conflicts that would compromise or appear to compromise impartiality and could not be cured merely by party agreement.

Decision March 11, 2017 Identifier MEAC Opinion 2017-008

Case at a glance

Court or authority: Mediator Ethics Advisory Committee, Florida Supreme Court
Authority status: Ethics or advisory opinion
Jurisdiction: Florida
Subject: Serving as mediator while being a litigant or fiduciary in other cases involving the same lawyers or parties.

MEAC Opinion 2017-008 — Florida Courts

Procedural posture and result

Advisory-opinion request concerning serving as mediator while being a litigant or fiduciary in other cases involving the same lawyers or parties. RESULT: The committee treated the relationships as clear conflicts that would compromise or appear to compromise impartiality and could not be cured merely by party agreement.

What happened and what the authority decided

The proposed mediator was personally a party—or acting as a bankruptcy trustee—in other litigation involving lawyers and a business that would appear in a separate mediation.

The committee treated the relationships as clear conflicts that would compromise or appear to compromise impartiality and could not be cured merely by party agreement.

What this tells the mediator

Some conflicts are too direct to waive. Disclosure is not a universal solution when the mediator’s personal legal interests intersect with participants in the mediation.

Practical guidance

Run conflict checks covering personal cases, fiduciary roles, firms, and related entities.
Disclose potential relationships as soon as they are identified.
Distinguish a waivable appearance issue from a direct personal-interest conflict.
Decline matters where impartiality is clearly impaired.
Update conflict checks when participants or counsel change.

Mediator takeaway

When the mediator’s own legal interests overlap with the participants, withdrawal may be mandatory.