Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.859 · Article 2. Rules of Conduct for Mediators in Court-Connected Mediation Programs for Civil Cases
Compensation and gifts
Text — As posted by the Judicial Council of California (read October 22, 2026)
(a) Compliance with law
A mediator must comply with any applicable requirements concerning compensation established by statute or the court.
(b) Disclosure of and compliance with compensation terms
Before commencing the mediation, the mediator must disclose to the parties in writing any fees, costs, or charges to be paid to the mediator by the parties. A mediator must abide by any agreement that is reached concerning compensation.
(c) Contingent fees
The amount or nature of a mediator's fee must not be made contingent on the outcome of the mediation.
(d) Gifts and favors
A mediator must not at any time solicit or accept from or give to any participant or affiliate of a participant any gift, bequest, or favor that might reasonably raise a question concerning the mediator's impartiality.
Notes and commentary — not rule text
History
(Subd (c) amended effective January 1, 2007.)
Rule 3.859 amended and renumbered effective January 1, 2007; adopted as rule 1620.9 effective January 1, 2003.
Advisory Committee Comment
Subdivision (b). It is good practice to put mediation fee agreements in writing, and mediators are strongly encouraged to do so; however, nothing in this rule is intended to preclude enforcement of a compensation agreement for mediation services that is not in writing.
Subdivision (d). Whether a gift, bequest, or favor "might reasonably raise a question concerning the mediator's impartiality" must be determined on a case-by-case basis. This subdivision is not intended to prohibit a mediator from accepting other employment from any of the participants, consistent with rule 3.858(d).
Source of truth
- Edition
- As posted by the Judicial Council of California (read October 22, 2026)
- Official file
- https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/three/rule3_859
- Text hash
- sha256 c68b44201e5ef8d54b77a48170b5bba2b37b2b80a03b2dd2fa1898752a7b03d2
- Composed by
- compose_crc.py 2026-10-22: the Judicial Council's rule pages read paragraph by paragraph; verify_crc.py's second reading of the Council's per-title PDFs finds every paragraph
This rule cites
Provisions in this library that the text above cites, as it prints each citation. A range cited as “ss. 61.13-61.16” links its first and last provisions.
California Rules of Court
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