List gaps in a draft agreement to mediate a commercial dispute

Key facts

Human involvement

Yellow · Close supervision

How AI is used

Compare the draft with the commercial mediation procedures on how mediation is started, how a mediator is appointed, what conflicts must be disclosed, who must attend with authority to settle, what may not be used later, and how deposits and expenses are shared. List gaps. Do not write the agreement that will be signed.

What the lawyer must review

You write any agreement that will be signed. Under M-1, the Commercial Mediation Procedures are part of the agreement when the parties provide, by stipulation or contract, for mediation or conciliation administered by the AAA or under those procedures, in the form in effect on the date a request for mediation is filed, unless they agree otherwise in writing. The parties may vary any part, including telephone or electronic means. M-2 starts a mediation by a request online, by email to casefiling@adr.org, or by mail, with simultaneous notice to the other party, the mediation clause or stipulation, names and contact details, a short statement of the dispute and the relief, and any mediator qualifications. If the parties have not agreed on a mediator, M-4 uses the search tool, then a list, then administrative appointment by mutual agreement or by strike-and-rank. M-5 requires the Model Standards of Conduct for Mediators in effect when the mediator is appointed, disclosure of actual and potential conflicts reasonably known, and replacement under M-4 if a party disagrees that the mediator shall serve or the conflict might reasonably be viewed as undermining the integrity of the mediation. M-8 requires representatives with authority to consummate a settlement. M-10, subject to applicable law or the parties' agreement, bars the mediator from divulging confidential information and bars the parties from relying on or introducing, in any arbitral, judicial, or other proceeding, the views, admissions, mediator proposals, and indications of willingness that M-10 lists, unless the parties agree or applicable law requires it. M-15 requires deposits in advance as the AAA, in consultation with the mediator, deems reasonable, unless the mediator directs otherwise. M-16 shares mediation expenses, including mediator travel, equally unless the parties agree otherwise. M-17 points to the fee schedule. No dollar amount was taken from that schedule. Rule R-10, which says the parties shall mediate when a claim or counterclaim exceeds $100,000 unless a party opts out, is not the signed mediation agreement. The consumer and employment footnotes on M-1 give the AAA discretion to apply other mediation procedures in the cases those footnotes describe. The commercial page links this PDF as 09/01/22. The PDF cover dates the mediation procedures as amended and effective 1 June 2026.

Written for / version

United States versionUS