Scotland's 'Mixed' Feelings About Mediation

This paper was delivered at the 25th International Association for Conflict Management Conference in Stellenbosch, South Africa on 12 July 2012. It considers Scotland’s lack of receptivity towards mediation in the light of its ‘mixed’ legal heritage of both civilian and common law influences. It contrasts the approach to mediation in England and Wales with that of France, where litigation acts like an ‘attracting magnet’. The paper draws on public pronouncements about mediation by senior Scottish judiciary to support its hypothesis that Scotland’s disputing culture retains civilian attitudes despite centuries of common law jurisprudence.