A meeting between judges of Kutaisi City Court, Kutaisi Court of Appeals and mediators from Kutaisi was facilitated by the USAID Rule of Law Program.

The meeting allowed eight judges and six mediators to meet each other, talk about their expectations for mediation, and discuss both what types of cases are best suited for mediation and the stages when and methods by which parties to a dispute can be persuaded to try mediation.

The meeting was also attended by the manager of the Kutaisi City Court and the staff of the Kutaisi Court of Appeals who will coordinate the mediation centers in their courts. 

In her opening remarks, the General Secretary of the Mediators Association of Georgia, Tamar Imnaishvili, discussed the Association’s efforts to help court mediation center coordinators share experiences and develop practices that promote mediation and make their work more efficient. 

The judges expressed their desire to have more opportunities for experience sharing with judges from other courts, as well as the need to build the capacity of their assistants (clerks) in mediation so they can explain the benefits of mediation to parties. Another need identified by all attendees was raising the awareness of both mediation as a process and mediators as professionals so that parties and their representatives are more open to mediation. 

The meeting was facilitated by mediation expert Eter Chachanidze and the USAID Rule of Law Program ADR Advisor Sophie Tkemaladze.