Purpose

The SCMA is a multi disciplinary cross-professional initiative of practitioners established to promote and deliver best practice, standards, competencies and professional excellence in mediation advocacy through individual and corporate training consultancy services and commercial activities. It is a Civil Mediation Council registered civil/commercial mediation training provider, an accredited International Mediation Institute (IMI) and Association of Mediation Assessors, Trainers and Instructors (AMATI) training provider, and a Bar Standards Board advocacy CPD provider. The practical objectives of SCMA are:

• To provide a forum for discourse among mediation practitioners
• To deliver reasonably priced certificated and accredited skills training for those representing parties to mediation and licence approved training by others
• To advise governments, judiciaries, Bars, private enterprises and academic institutions on establishing systems and courses to promote, teach and research mediation advocacy and its uses
• To promote actively the expertise and experience of its members and registered users in the marketplace
• To monitor and validate registered users training and CPD records
• To engage with mediation service providers, clients of the process and academics researching in mediation and associated fields to create minimum practice standards and competencies for the benefit of mediation users
• To create a recognisable brand and mark among consumers which will identify registered users practices with the SCMA quality threshhold for mediation representation

Structure

The SCMA operates through a Convenor, Secretariat and an appointed Advisory Board.

Activities

SCMA provides open and in-house skills training through the use of senior practitioners and experienced authors and trainers in the field, and bespoke corporate training accredited with the Civil Mediation Council, the International Mediation Institute, Bar Council, Law Society, CILEx, and participates in the RICS Life Long Learning programme, and with other professional bodies. It promotes and seeks discounts for other commercial and mediation organisations’ products; it offers books and journals, discounted to members where possible.

SCMA hosts open meetings, seminars and other activities intended to culminate in an annual convention. It has international outlets and membership in France, Belgium, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Italy, Ghana, Nigeria, Egypt, the UAE, Nepal, Chile, Palestine, Turkey, and the Far East. Since 2009 the SCMA has held events in Hong Kong, Dubai, Istanbul, Ankara, Kathmandu, Brussels, Paris and Amsterdam and also advised governments and judicaries in the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong SAR, India, Belgium, Nepal, Croatia and Canada.

SCMA provides an e-newsletter and hopes to commission a full practice and academic journal in due course. It operates a specialist online bookstore and commissions new titles in ADR for its associated imprint Mediation Publishing.

SCMA promotes its identity with a logo which has become established in the marketplace as a quality mark for Mediation Advocates. Registered users are licensed to use the SCMA logo on their letterhead.

Please note that SCMA registered users belong to other professional bodies and are the subject of regulation carried out by the member’s ‘home’ profession i.e. lawyers, surveyors, accountants, engineers, governing among other things conduct, ethics and professional indemnity insurance.