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

What Should a Mediator Report When an Agreement Is Unsigned?

Florida’s Mediator Ethics Advisory Committee concluded that the parties may choose who drafts a mediated agreement, but only the mediator may submit the mediation report. If a party refuses to sign the proposed agreement, the mediator should report “no agreement,” and an unsigned mediation document generally remains confidential unless the applicable requirements for disclosure are satisfied.

Decision November 9, 2022 Identifier MEAC Opinion 2022-003

Case at a glance

Court or authority: Mediator Ethics Advisory Committee, Florida Supreme Court
Authority status: Ethics or advisory opinion
Jurisdiction: Florida
Subject: Unsigned mediation agreements; mediator court reports; settlement drafting; mediation confidentiality; signature requirements.

MEAC Opinion 2022-003 — Florida Courts

Procedural posture and result

Advisory-opinion request concerning who may draft a mediated settlement agreement, who may submit the mediation report to the court, and how the mediator should report the outcome when an agreement negotiated during mediation remains unsigned.

What happened and what the authority decided

A mediator handled a dispute in which the parties reached detailed terms during mediation. The parties agreed that one side’s attorney would prepare the written settlement or stipulation after the session.

The resulting document contained provisions that had not been discussed during mediation and required additional signatures. One party objected to the added terms and refused to sign the proposed agreement.

The mediator asked whether a party or attorney could draft the settlement, whether someone other than the mediator could submit the mediation report, and how the mediator should report the outcome when the settlement remained unsigned.

The Mediator Ethics Advisory Committee concluded that the parties may decide who will draft the agreement. The mediator is responsible for ensuring that the terms reached are appropriately memorialized and for discussing the formalization process, but the mediator is not necessarily required to personally draft the document.

MEAC also concluded that only the mediator may complete and submit the mediation report. A settlement agreement or stipulation cannot be filed by another person in place of the mediator’s report.

Most importantly, if a party refuses to sign the agreement, an impasse has been reached and the mediator should report “no agreement.” The parties may instead agree to schedule another mediation session to continue negotiations or work on the agreement.

What this tells the mediator

A mediator must distinguish between terms discussed during mediation and a completed, reportable settlement. Negotiation progress or an unsigned draft should not be treated as a final agreement when the applicable signature requirements have not been satisfied. The mediator also retains responsibility for filing the mediation report and should not delegate that neutral reporting function to a party or attorney.

Practical guidance

Discuss the memorialization process before the session ends.
Identify who will draft and who must sign.
Do not report an agreement until applicable signature requirements are satisfied.
Never delegate the mediator’s court report to a party or lawyer.
Preserve unsigned drafts as confidential unless law clearly permits disclosure.

Mediator takeaway

A negotiated draft is not automatically a reportable settlement; completion requirements matter.