Companion to the Solomaris Arbitration Rules.
These Solomaris Mediation Rules govern mediation conducted under Solomaris Arbitration. They are designed to be read alongside the Solomaris Arbitration Rules: a mediation may be commenced as a standalone process, as a mandatory first tier under a multi-tier dispute clause, or at any point during an arbitration already underway. A settlement reached under these Rules may be recorded as a consent Award under Article 23 of the Solomaris Arbitration Rules, giving it New York Convention enforceability in the 172 states party to that Convention.
Where a settlement is not converted to a consent Award, it may instead be directly enforceable under the Singapore Convention. As explained in Article 15, Singapore Convention coverage is materially narrower than New York Convention coverage today, so parties who want the broadest enforceability should use the consent-Award route and treat direct Singapore Convention enforcement as a secondary option.
This is a first working edition, prepared for internal review. It is not legal advice and has not been reviewed by counsel admitted in any jurisdiction of intended enforcement.
1.1 These Solomaris Mediation Rules (“the Rules”) govern mediation conducted under Solomaris Arbitration, whether commenced as a standalone process, as a first tier under a multi-tier clause, or by agreement after a dispute has arisen.
1.2 Nothing in these Rules requires the parties to reach a settlement. Mediation under these Rules is a voluntary, without-prejudice process; the mediator has no authority to impose an outcome.
1.3 Where the parties' agreement conflicts with a mandatory provision of the law of the seat or place of mediation, the mandatory provision prevails.
“Consent Award” means a settlement agreement recorded as an Award under Article 23 of the Solomaris Arbitration Rules.
“Mediation” means a process in which the parties attempt, with the assistance of a Mediator who has no authority to decide the dispute, to reach a negotiated settlement.
“Mediator” means the person or persons appointed under Article 7 to conduct a mediation under these Rules.
“Secretariat” means the administrative function designated by Solomaris to support mediation under these Rules.
“Settlement Agreement” means a written agreement resolving all or part of the dispute, reached by the parties in the course of a mediation under these Rules.
“Singapore Convention” means the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation (2019).
3.1 Notice may be given by on-chain message through the Engine's shared notification protocol, or by any other means agreed by the parties.
3.2 Time periods under these Rules are calculated on the same basis as under the Solomaris Arbitration Rules.
4.1 A party commences mediation by filing a Request for Mediation identifying the parties, briefly describing the dispute, and stating whether a Mediator is proposed.
4.2 Where mediation is a mandatory first tier under a multi-tier clause, time spent in mediation does not itself extend any limitation period applicable to a later arbitration, except as the law of the seat provides.
5.1 Within seven days of receiving the Request, the other party confirms its agreement to mediate and states its position on the choice of Mediator.
5.2 If a party declines to mediate within fourteen days, the Secretariat records the mediation as concluded without settlement, and the requesting party may proceed to arbitration if the parties' agreement so provides.
6.1 Mediation under these Rules is billed under the Solomaris Schedule of Fees, which also sets out arbitration filing fees and administrative charges under the Solomaris Arbitration Rules.
6.2 The Mediator's fee is agreed between the parties and the Mediator at appointment, or set by the Secretariat where the Mediator is Solomaris-appointed.
6.3 Where a mediation settlement is recorded as a consent Award under Article 14, the consent-Award charge is credited by any mediation fee already paid.
7.1 The parties may jointly select a Mediator from the certified roster, or request that the Secretariat propose one having regard to the subject matter.
7.2 Appointment of a Mediator is not made by verifiable random function as a default — party choice and fit matter more in mediation than in the impartial-draw model used for arbitration. The parties may agree to a VRF-assisted draw instead.
7.3 Every Mediator must hold current Solomaris mediator certification under Schedule 2.
8.1 A proposed Mediator discloses any circumstance that might give rise to justifiable doubts as to independence before accepting appointment.
8.2 A party may object within seven days of disclosure. If the parties cannot agree on a replacement, the Secretariat proposes an alternative.
8.3 A Mediator may be replaced at any time by joint agreement, or must withdraw if no longer able to act impartially.
9.1 The Mediator conducts the mediation in the manner considered appropriate to help the parties reach a settlement.
9.2 The Mediator may meet with the parties together or separately and may suggest settlement terms, but does not decide the dispute or issue a binding determination.
9.3 Mediation may be conducted wholly online, in person, or hybrid, as the parties and Mediator agree.
10.1 The mediation, including statements and documents produced for it, is confidential, save for disclosure required by law or necessary to enforce a Settlement Agreement.
10.2 The Mediator does not disclose to one party what is said by another in a separate session, except with that party's consent.
11.1 No statement or proposal made during mediation may be relied upon in any arbitration or litigation arising from the same dispute.
11.2 This Article does not apply to a concluded Settlement Agreement itself.
12.1 Mediation terminates on: signature of a Settlement Agreement; a joint statement that mediation has failed; a written declaration by the Mediator that further efforts are unlikely to succeed; or expiry of any agreed time limit.
12.2 Termination without full settlement does not prevent a partial settlement, nor either party proceeding to arbitration on any unresolved issue.
13.1 A Settlement Agreement is recorded in writing, signed by the parties, and — where the parties wish to preserve Singapore Convention enforcement — attested by the Mediator.
13.2 On execution, the Settlement Agreement is hashed and anchored to the ledger, creating a verifiable record of its terms and execution date without disclosing its content on-chain.
14.1 At the joint request of the parties, a Settlement Agreement is submitted to a sole arbitrator for recording as a consent Award under Article 23 of the Solomaris Arbitration Rules.
14.2 A consent Award recorded under this Article is enforceable under the New York Convention on the same footing as any other Award, in any of the 172 states party to that Convention.
14.3 Conversion requires an underlying arbitration agreement referencing the Solomaris Arbitration Rules; the parties may adopt one for this limited purpose in the Settlement Agreement itself.
15.1 Where the parties do not convert a Settlement Agreement under Article 14, it may be directly enforceable under the Singapore Convention in a ratifying state, provided the settlement resolves an international commercial dispute.
15.2 Singapore Convention coverage is materially narrower than New York Convention coverage: roughly sixty states have signed it, far fewer have ratified, and neither the EU nor any member state has signed. The UAE has publicly committed, with ADGM's support, to becoming a signatory, and Saudi Arabia and Qatar have already ratified.
15.3 Parties who want the most reliable cross-border enforceability should use the consent-Award route under Article 14. Direct Singapore Convention enforcement is a lighter-weight alternative.
15.4 Every Settlement Agreement should state expressly whether the parties intend Singapore Convention enforceability, since some Contracting States require an opt-in election.
16.1 Where mediation terminates without a full settlement, either party may commence or resume arbitration under the Solomaris Arbitration Rules on any unresolved issue.
16.2 No adverse inference is drawn in a subsequent arbitration from a party's conduct during mediation, save as expressly permitted by Article 11.
17.1 None of Solomaris, the Secretariat, or a Mediator is liable for an act or omission in connection with a mediation, save for conscious and deliberate wrongdoing.
18.1 Solomaris may amend these Rules from time to time. The version in force at the date a Request for Mediation is filed governs that mediation.
19.1 These Rules are issued in English. A translation is provided for convenience only; the English text governs in the event of conflict.
The applicable mediation filing fees, mediator fees, and consent-Award conversion charges are set out in the Solomaris Schedule of Fees, as amended from time to time by the Secretariat.
An applicant must hold recognised mediation training or equivalent professional standing, and complete Solomaris's training on the shared evidence-hashing and settlement-recording protocol.
A certified Mediator must disclose conflicts, remain impartial, maintain confidentiality, and refrain from any conduct that pressures a party toward a particular outcome.
Solomaris may suspend or revoke mediator certification for breach of the Code of Conduct, removing the Mediator from the certified roster for future appointments.