ADRS: Mediation Procedure Explained by Mediators

On the morning of June 9, 2026, at 11:00 AM, I visited the Bangalore Mediation Centre. It is located inside the beautiful “Nyaya Degula” (Temple of Justice) building near Shanti Nagar.

When we first arrived, the building was completely quiet. We were seated in a training hall built for about 50 people. Everyone in the room was highly curious, waiting with a lot of questions in their minds. As the hours passed, the environment shifted completely. By the afternoon, the hall and corridors were packed to maximum capacity with lawyers and everyday people. There was movement everywhere, and there was hardly any space left to walk.

In that energized setting, Advocate Joe Joseph—a prominent High Court Advocate, seasoned Mediator, and National Level Trainer with over 15 years of experience—held a session for us. He explained how Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems (ADRS) work on the ground. He left us with a powerful quote that perfectly summarizes his work:

“In court, only one party wins. In mediation, both win.”

1. The Legal Backbone: How Mediation Fits into the Law

Even though mediation feels like a casual, friendly conversation, it is backed by strict civil laws. Advocate Joe Joseph broke down the legal rules that allow judges to send cases here:

• The Main Law: Mediation gets its legal authority from Section 89 of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) and the 89A Amendment.
• The Court’s Duty: Under Order 10 Rule 1A of the CPC, courts must guide people toward an ADRS path after basic paperwork is filed. He cited the famous Afcons Case, which is the ultimate judgment that decided which cases can go to mediation.
• The Referral Order: A mediator cannot just pick up any case. The process starts only when a judge issues a formal referral order stating who is involved, where they need to go, and when.
• The Final Decision: Once both sides sign a mediation agreement, it is final. There is no appeal and no revision in a higher court. You can only fix minor clerical mistakes. The case can only be revisited if life situations completely change (for example, if a mother gets custody of a child but later loses her job and can no longer afford to take care of them).

2. Court vs. Mediation: Why Both Sides Win

To clear up the confusion that many of us in the hall had, he simplified what actually happens at the end of different legal processes. Traditional courts create a winner and a loser, whereas mediation focuses on a mutual solution:

Because a mediation agreement comes directly from a judge’s order and represents a mutual choice, you do not need to register the agreement or pay registration fees. It goes straight back to the judge to be officially closed.

3. The Iceberg Trick: Conflict vs. Dispute

One of the most interesting parts of the talk was how Joe Joseph explained human behavior using the Iceberg Analogy.

He said: “The legal dispute is just the tip of the iceberg visible above the sea. The real conflict is the massive, dangerous block of ice hidden underwater.”

     ▲      <-- The Dispute (The lawsuit, court cases, what people argue about)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    /   \
   /     \  <-- The Conflict (The Iceberg: domestic issues, ego, fear, 
  /_______\      child custody, financial insecurity hidden below)

Regular court trials only deal with the visible tip (the legal claims). Mediation dives deep underwater to fix the hidden conflict—like ego, fear, family trauma, and unexpressed needs.

Take a typical divorce as an example. When a couple fights bitterly in court, a single marriage split easily breaks into 5 separate legal cases (such as maintenance alimony, domestic violence, and criminal complaints).

Mediation brings all 5 of these cases into one room. The mediator looks at the true underlying issues, like child custody fears or property worries. The scope of mediation can even expand to solve problems that weren’t part of the original court case. If both sides agree, they simply file a 13B petition for mutual divorce, closing all 5 court battles peacefully at once.

4. Inside the Room: The 7 Stages of Mediation

A mediator is not a judge and they are not acting as your lawyer. They are a neutral, unbiased facilitator. Joe Joseph walked us through the 7 steps they use to turn an angry fight into a joint victory:

1. Welcome and Seating: Making it human. Parties are called strictly by their human names—never by their cold court case numbers. Crucially, the husband and wife sit right next to the mediator, while their lawyers sit slightly behind them. This immediately changes the room from a battlefield into a collaborative space.

2. Introduction: Building trust. The mediator spends time learning about the background, baseline thinking, and behavior of both individuals.

3. Opening Statement: Setting ground rules. The mediator explains how the process works. Joe Joseph highlights the golden rule here: “The parties themselves are the judges in this room.” He also emphasizes strict confidentiality—nothing said in mediation can ever be used as evidence in court if the talks fail.

4. Joint Session: Sharing perspectives. Both sides sit together and openly share their stories while the other side listens.

5. Private Session (Caucus): Uncovering secrets. The mediator talks to each person alone. In these private rooms, people reveal their true worries. The mediator takes notes and asks deep, targeted questions. They then hold a private session with the other party to ask those questions. More sessions mean more questions, slowly peeling away layers of anger.

6. Proposals & Realities Test: Checking expectations. If a party demands an impossible amount of money or sets unrealistic conditions, the mediator conducts a “Realities Test.” They ask practical questions to guide them back to a realistic, logical number.

7. Settlement: Signing the peace. The final terms are written down clearly into a binding agreement where both sides walk away happy.

5. The Real Reward: The “Good Feeling” Case Study

To wrap up his presentation, Joe Joseph reminded us that mediation is about human feelings, not just legal text. He noted that while government payments for mediators have slowly increased from suo motu (free volunteer work) to ₹250, then ₹500, and now ₹2,000 per day (with some senior experts charging per sitting), the real pay is what he calls the “good feeling” of saving a family.

He shared a beautiful real-life case:

Conclusion

Watching the Nyaya Degula complex transform from a quiet morning hall of 50 curious onlookers into a crowded, busy space by the afternoon showed me a clear truth: conflict is a natural part of life, but resolving it does not require a legal war.

Through patience, private sessions, and looking at real human interests, national trainers like Joe Joseph prove that courtrooms do not hold a monopoly on justice. Traditional courts are designed to make sure one side loses, but the true triumph of mediation is proving that it is entirely possible for both sides to win.