The effectiveness of justice: a constitucional requirement, (the new alternative systems of dispute resolution)

Abstract

The right to jurisdiction cannot be understood without taking into account the time frame in which the judicial protection of individual rights and interests must be provided. The prohibition of undue delays is part of the right to a fair trial. The effectiveness of our judicial system requires that, together with the judicial process, other complementary methods of dispute resolution are made available. The development of so-called alternative systems of dispute resolution is usually associated more or less directly to the difficulties of improving the justice system, given the practical problems of saturation of the Justice Courts that nearly all countries face. However, the relationship between courts and non-judicial methods must be one of compatibility and complementarity. The implementation of these new tools must be such as to guarantee citizens access to justice in an easier and more efficient way, and in within reasonable timeframe. Mediation, the spearhead of these non-judicial systems, aims to be a more consensual dispute resolution method that may be more appropriate in those cases where, given the nature of the conflict, the parties involved need to maintain the relationship that exists between them. It has its own merits as a method of dispute resolution that deserves to be promoted regardless of the effect of alleviating the load of work of the courts. We study the characteristics and essential guarantees of the mediation process under the new Royal Decree-Act 5/2012 of 5 March. We also examine whether the new regulation establishes a legal framework that encourages the use of mediation as an effective method to try to reach negotiated solutions to conflicts.