ABA Says Third-Party Lawyer-Mediators Must Be ‘Credibly Neutral’

Lawyers acting as third-party neutral mediators need to be careful to ensure that unrepresented parties in negotiations understand the nature and scope of their role, the American Bar Association says in a new ethics opinion.

Lawyer-mediators must explain the difference between their role as a neutral and a lawyer’s more typical role representing a client, especially when a party is unrepresented and doesn’t understand the mediation process, says the opinion released Wednesday.

Under Rule 2.4 of the ABA’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct, a lawyer serving as a “third-party neutral” assists two or more people who aren’t clients to resolve ...