What does it mean for the mediation process to be accessible for people with disabilities?
Making the mediation accessible for individuals with disabilities may mean providing auxiliary aids or services, adapting procedures, modifying policies, changing locations, or other methods of removing barriers to full and informed participation in the process. As a best practice, mediators should help all parties identify what they need to participate effectively in the mediation and reasonably adapt the process to their needs. A mediator should consider whether the parties can: • physically access the mediation facility; • obtain and use necessary information related to the mediation process; • understand the purpose and goals of the mediation; • understand the role of each person present (including advocates, support persons, resource persons or neutral experts, interpreters, etc.); • understand the steps in the mediation process and the “ground rules”; and, participate as fully as possible according to each party’s abilities in all phases of the mediation process, including prelim
