Mediation with the conciliation judge

What is mediation with the conciliation judge?

Mediation is an independent procedure for settling conflicts. It is based on the idea that the parties to a dispute are the experts in resolving it.

Mediation with the conciliation judge is possible if a complaint/appeal has been received and served by the court. It is voluntary. The mediation with the conciliation judge therefore only takes place if everybody agrees to it. Consent is obtained either by the judge deciding the dispute or by the conciliation judge. The parties may also suggest such proceedings themselves.

Mediation is a structured procedure. The parties work out their own economic, personal or other individual interests. On the basis of these interests, they develop options for resolving the conflict. These options are adapted to the particular circumstances of the conflict. They often are more future orientated and far-reaching than the options which would be proposed in conventional court proceedings.

The parties are supported by specially trained conciliation judges. The conciliation judges moderate the dispute to provide fair and transparent proceedings. The conciliation judges conducting mediation proceedings do not decide this legal dispute as judges. Therefore they do not communicate their own legal opinions. The conciliation judges can record a binding, enforceable court settlement.

What are the advantages of a mediation with the conciliation judge?

• More time is available for conflict resolution than in a court hearing.
• The parties and what they have to say take centre stage.
• The parties’ interests are identified and taken into account.
• The parties themselves determine how their conflict is resolved.
• Additional conflicts between the parties can also be discussed and solved.
• The parties get an appointment at short notice, if possible, within a couple of weeks.
• The hearing is not public; the parties can agree on confidentiality between themselves.
• The parties can call in third persons who are not yet involved in the legal dispute.
• As a rule, no additional court costs will incur. For lawyers charging according to the RVG, the hearing fee and the settlement fee will accrue.

In how many cases is a settlement achieved?

Since 2009, approximately 450 conciliation proceedings per year are conducted at the Regional Court of Berlin II with the consent of the parties (at all civil courts in Berlin in total about 650 conciliation proceedings). The settlement rate stands at around 2/3. In addition, further court proceedings are often resolved through this settlement which increases this rate. Even in cases where no comprehensive agreement can be reached in the conciliation proceedings, there are often partial settlements or understandings that pave the way for an agreement before the deciding judge.

The annual statistics compiled by the Coordination Office for Court Mediation at Civil Courts in Berlin are published here. These statistics do not reflect the figures of the official judicial statistics. The section “Eingänge” lists the number of proceedings that are received by the mediation department, regardless of whether the parties have already given their consent. “Zustimmung erteilt” shows the number of proceedings where the parties actually agree to mediate their case. The column “Anzahl durchgeführter GüRi-Termine“ counts the number of mediation hearings (sometimes more than one per case). The number of successfully terminated proceedings (by settlement agreement, withdrawl of action etc – even without a mediation hearing) is listed in the column “vollständige Erledigung des (Streit-)Verfahrens”. The next column “Anzahl der Teilvergleiche” shows the number of partial settlements achieved. Other court cases that have been terminated at the same time are counted in the column “Anzahl miterledigter Prozesse”. The last column “nach ergebnislosem GüRi-Termin Vergleich vor Streitkammer“ lists the number of cases when the parties to mediation proceedings without result afterwards settled before the deciding judge.

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Status: July 2025