Who to contact?
For information on mediation in Cyprus, please contact the Ministry of Justice and Public Order (Ypourgeío Dikaiosýnis kai Dimosías Táxeos), the Cyprus Bar Association (Pankýprios Dikigorikós Sýllogos), the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kypriako Emporikó kai Viomichanikó Epimelitírio) or the Scientific Technical Chamber of Cyprus (Epistimonikó Technikó Epimelitírio Kýprou).
In what areas is recourse to mediation admissible and/or the most common?
Provided that the parties involved consent, recourse can be taken to mediation in order to resolve any civil dispute, whether cross-border or not, including commercial disputes. The law does not apply either to family disputes or to labour disputes that do not fall under cross-border disputes.
Are there specific rules to follow?
In accordance with the Law on Certain Matters of Mediation in Civil Disputes of 2012 (Law 159(I)/2012), the parties appoint a mediator consensually. The procedure is informal. In consultation with the mediator, the parties agree on the procedure to follow, its duration, the obligation of confidentiality of the procedure, the remuneration of the mediator and the conditions of payment, and any other matter deemed necessary.
What is the cost of mediation?
In accordance with the law, before initiating the mediation procedure, the parties agree on various points, in consultation with the mediator, including how to establish the mediator’s remuneration and the conditions of payment of the mediator, and any other costs of the procedure. Therefore, there is no fixed cost for mediation; it basically depends on the complexity of the case.
Is it possible to enforce an agreement resulting from mediation?
If the parties reach a settlement agreement, this is drawn up by the mediator in writing, and both parties jointly, or either of them with the express consent of the other party, may file with the court a request for enforcement of the settlement agreement. In this case, it should be enforced in the same way as a court decision.