The Rajasthan State Legal Services Authority has completed a 40-hour mediation training program for former judges, describing the initiative as a first-of-its-kind effort to expand the state’s mediation infrastructure with experienced judicial personnel.
Mediation has gained traction across India as courts encourage alternative dispute resolution to reduce backlog. Training retired judges leverages their adjudicative experience while orienting them to facilitative rather than decision-making roles.
The 40-hour curriculum typically covers negotiation theory, ethics, confidentiality and practical simulation exercises. RSLSA’s focus on former judges distinguishes this cohort from lawyer-mediator programs that legal services authorities routinely conduct.
Rajasthan, like other states, operates legal services authorities under the Legal Services Authorities Act to provide free aid and promote ADR. Bolstering mediator supply can accelerate court-annexed and community mediation referrals in civil, family and commercial disputes.
Officials said the program aims to embed a corps of credible neutrals who parties may trust because of their judicial backgrounds. Success will be measured by how many trained former judges actively take mediation assignments through RSLSA panels in the coming months.
Court-annexed mediation programs in Rajasthan refer civil disputes where judges believe negotiated settlement may succeed faster than full trial. Former judges trained under the RSLSA program could be rostered for cases requiring credibility with parties skeptical of lawyer-mediators alone.
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Sources:
https://www.livelaw.in/news-updates