Kakamega Law Courts mediators educate Kenyans on mediation as an alternative conflicts resolution method.
Kenyans have been asked to embrace court-annexed mediation as an alternative method of solving conflicts as opposed to solving them through normal court proceedings which usually take a lot of time.
Court annexed mediation is a form of alternative method resolution where cases brought before courts of law are referred to mediation as a possible means of settlement. Most mediators are employees of the Judiciary and they are mandated to help the conflicting parties reach an agreement.
According to Esther Bokello and Josephine Maragi who are both mediators at the Kakamega Law Courts, mediation has been there for a long time and should be embraced fully as it is less costly and leaves both parties satisfied hence good relations afterwards. This service is offered freely in the Kenyan Judicial system.
Mediation was incorporated into the Kenyan court system in 2016. It was later launched in Kakameaga Law Courts in 2018 where a total of about 20 mediators serve the public.
According to the mediators, mediation involves cases such as child maintenance cases, succession and inheritance cases, employment relation cases and environment cases. These cases often involve people who are related in some way hence making mediation to be carried out in order to resolve them.
During the mediation process all parties should follow rules given by the mediator. They should also comply with the statement of understanding that is read by a mediator. All emerging issues should be handled well during mediation.
The mediators also said that the process can be initiated at any time of a case before a court of law if both parties agree to withdraw the case and decide on mediation as resolution method.
Mediation is usually done in specific rooms separate from the usual courtrooms but conflicting parties can even choose hotels or other convenient venues for their mediation proceedings.
Mrs. Bokello said that after the mediation process is complete a report is written by the mediator who handled the case. Every party should act as per the agreement and whoever contravenes the agreement can be charged before a court of law.
Some of the advantages highlighted by the mediators include; mediation is the most effective way of conflict resolution, it takes a short period of time as compared to other methods, it enhances good relations between conflicting parties and conflicts can be resolved at anytime provided there is a mediator. Furthermore Mrs. Bokello noted that out of 70 cases where mediation was applied as the conflict resolution method, 47 were successful.
The mediators while speaking during a live interview on West FM radio finally reminded Kenyans of the mediation settlement week that commences on 6th June at the Kakamega Law Courts.
However, Carolyne Cheryot and Sylvia Wayodi who serve as magistrates at the Courts in Kakamega clearly highlighted the importance of small courts in the Kenyan Judicial system.
According to Wayodi, these courts were established in 2021.The courts were established at the Kakamega Law Courts in May 2022 to ease backlog of cases in courts which involved small amounts of money.
Small claims courts were set up to handle cases whose total cost does not exceed one million shillings. Such cases include debt recovery, contracts of sales and supply of goods, compensation for personal injuries and cases involving money held or received. The default period for lodging complaints at the courts include 6 years for debts and 3 years for cases involving accidents.
The magistrates said that only civil cases are handled by these courts .Members of the public and even companies qualify to lodge cases at these courts and cases are heard and settled within 60 days.
The procedure for filing such cases involves filling forms at the Chief Magistrate court and later an adjudicator is assigned to the case. A filing fees of Ksh 1000 is required.
Some of the advantages of these courts highlighted by the Magistrates include; reduction of backlog of cases in courts, fast delivery of justice and timely disposal of court proceedings.
By Edi Mulindo