Civil and commercial mediation is regulated by the provisions of the “Law on Certain Aspects of Mediation in Civil Matters, 159(I)/2012.”
It should be noted that, at the beginning of 2023, amendments to this Law were proposed and underwent public consultation; this questionnaire was completed in May 2023.
The text of Law 159(I) in English can be accessed via the link
Family mediation in Cyprus is regulated by the provisions of the “Law on Mediation in Family Disputes” of 2019,Law 62(I)/2019. At present, the text of the Law is available only in Greek.
Cyprus also has a Financial Ombudsman Service.
The relevant legislation in English can be accessed via the link. link
More information in English is available at the link.
As of May 2023, there are no court-annexed or court-based mediation programs in Cyprus.
As of May 2023, there is no “mandatory” mediation in Cyprus for specific types of disputes, although such proposals were made at the beginning of 2023.
There are currently no provisions on mediation in procedural acts.
Legal Consequences of Agreements Concluded as a Result of Mediation and the Main Requirements for Such Agreementsсновні вимоги до таких угод.
The legal consequences of agreements concluded as a result of mediation are set out in Article 32 of Law 159(I) of 2012:
- A request for the enforcement of an agreement resulting from mediation may be submitted to the court:
- jointly by all parties;
- by one of the parties with the explicit consent of the others, unless such explicit consent is provided for in the settlement agreement.
- If the settlement agreement is drafted in a language other than Greek, the Court may also require a duly certified translation into Greek.
- Following a request made in accordance with paragraph 1, the Court may:
- make all or part of the settlement agreement enforceable in the same manner as a court judgment is enforced, and in such a case may issue a court judgment containing the content of the settlement agreement;
- reject the request to make the agreement enforceable if it considers that either the content of the agreement is contrary to the law or invalid, or that the dispute is unlikely to be settled through mediation.
- A decision of the Court rejecting a request to make the agreement enforceable for the reasons stated in paragraph 3 may be appealed in the same manner as a court judgment.
- The Court competent to receive requests under paragraph 1 of this section is the Court within whose jurisdiction the dispute is heard under the law of the Republic, regardless of the place where the mediation process takes place.
- Nothing in this section affects the rules applicable to the recognition and enforcement in another Member State of an agreement that is enforceable under this section.
§ 02
Requirements for a mediator
Qualifications for a mediator in civil and commercial matters:
- All lawyers registered on the Roll of Advocates may register and conduct commercial mediation without additional training, although this may change in light of recent legislative amendment proposals.
- All lawyers registered on the Roll of Advocates may register and conduct civil mediation after completing 40 hours of basic mediator training.
- Any other professionals holding an academic degree may register with the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry or with the Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber as commercial mediators after completing 40 hours of basic mediator training.
All professionals must have no criminal record and must not hold any public office, whether on a permanent, temporary, or substitute basis in the public service.
Under the “Law on Mediation in Family Disputes,” family mediators working in Cyprus must meet the following requirements:
- have education in the field of law, psychology, or social work;
- have no criminal record;
- have professional practice in Cyprus for at least 1 year before submitting an application for registration as a family mediator;
- have resided in Cyprus for at least 2 years before submitting an application for registration as a family mediator;
- not have been a civil servant during the previous 2 years;
- attend a specialized family mediation course;
- have professional liability insurance.
At present, there are several registers: within the Cyprus Bar Association, the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber.
There is also a separate register for family mediators.
All records are also kept at the Ministry of Justice and Public Order of Cyprus.
According to recent proposals for legislative amendments, all registers are to be unified; however, this has not yet happened.
There are currently no special provisions on the automatic recognition or registration of mediators accredited in foreign countries rather than in Cyprus.
If mediators have already attended 40 hours of basic mediator training and meet all other criteria, they may contact either the Bar Association, if they practice as lawyers in Cyprus, or the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry to verify compliance with all criteria and begin registration.
Mediators registered with the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry must pay an annual fee of EUR 150.
