Mediation as an alternative to litigation: A comparative study between South Africa and Germany

Abstract

The judicial court system in South Africa is overburdened, which results in parties having to wait for long periods of time to have their matters settled or even heard. Furthermore, the cost of litigation in South Africa is immense, which prevents the biggest part of the population from access to justice in line with s 34 of the Constitution of 1996. Therefore, alternative methods of dispute resolution are worth looking into. This paper will compare the mediation system of South Africa with that of Germany. This will allow for a better insight in regard to mediation within South Africa, which can help to address the above stated problems.