Brussels, 09/04/2008 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 8 April, the European Parliament legal affairs committee approved in a second reading, the draft directive promoting mediation in civil and commercial cross-border disputes. No amendments were made to the Council's common position. The EP and Council came to an agreement on the proposal, which should provide a cost-efficient and quick extra-judicial resolution of disputes. If the plenary confirms the approval of the report by Arlene McCarthy (PES, UK), the new provisions on mediation in cross-border cases will be need to be implemented within three years. The text stipulates that recourse to mediation must always be voluntary, even if, in some cases it is advised by a court. In any event an EU citizen who chose a mediation procedure to resolve a dispute would not thereby be precluded from recourse to an ordinary court. To ensure that any agreement reached by the parties to mediation proceedings is enforced, the text specifies that the agreement should be applicable in all member states. Member states will ensure that neither mediators nor the parties involved in the proceedings may disclose information regarding the mediation. Member states are to provide training for national mediators and to encourage the drawing up of voluntary codes of conduct to guarantee a fair trial. At a later stage, EU governments could post the list of trained mediators on the internet. An opt-out means that the legislation will not apply to Denmark. (B.C.)