---
title: "Heads of agreement signed at the end of a mediation (binding terms of settlement)"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/mediation-heads-of-agreement"
type: "precedent"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "a6-mediation-heads-of-agreement"
area_id: "A6"
kind: "agreement"
ai_level: "yellow"
version: 1
task_ids: ["A6-T1-R10"]
law_stated_as_at: "2026-10-18"
---

# Heads of agreement signed at the end of a mediation (binding terms of settlement)

> Short binding terms of settlement for signing in the mediation room: payment, releases, confidentiality, consent orders, a consent to admit the document to enforce it, and what happens if the formal deed is never signed.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/mediation-heads-of-agreement  
Law stated as at: 2026-10-18

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

- Kind: Agreement. A contract between two or more parties.
- Practice area: [Arbitration & Alternative Dispute Resolution](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution.md)
- Jurisdictions: Australia, New South Wales, Commonwealth
- AI level: Yellow. AI can help in set ways. A lawyer checks specific points before use.
- Law stated as at: 2026-10-18
- Status: Maintained. Checked on 2026-10-18 against the 3 authorities it cites, for Australia, New South Wales and Commonwealth.

## When to use it

Use at the end of a mediation (court-referred or private) when the parties have reached agreement and need a signed, enforceable record before they leave. Use it to bridge to a formal deed of settlement or consent orders, not to replace advice on the final terms.

## Used for these tasks

- [Draft the settlement agreement or consent award](https://ailawframework.com/practice/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution.md#A6-T1-R10)

## How AI may be used

AI may fill the template from the agreed term list and check figures, names and dates; the lawyer settles every term with the client in the room and confirms it reflects what was actually agreed before anyone signs.

**AI may:**

- Populate party names, proceeding numbers, amounts and dates from the mediation term list the lawyer has confirmed
- Cross-check payment amounts, instalment dates and interest against the term list and flag any arithmetic that does not reconcile
- List terms in the term list that have no clause yet (for example costs, GST, a tax indemnity, a non-disparagement term)

**AI must not:**

- Must not add, soften or widen a release, indemnity or confidentiality term that the parties did not agree at the mediation
- Must not decide whether the document is binding now or only an agreement to agree; the lawyer chooses the wording in clause 1
- Must not be given the mediator’s private-session notes or the other side’s confidential offers in a tool outside the firm’s approved environment

**The lawyer checks:**

- Clause 1 says plainly that the parties intend to be bound now, even if a formal deed is to follow, and the client understands that
- The release matches the claims actually in dispute, names the right entities and carves out the obligations under this document
- The consent to admission (clause 9) is included so the document can be relied on to enforce it despite mediation privilege
- Signatories have authority (s 127 or an authorised officer), and an insurer’s or funder’s consent has been obtained where required
- Consent orders or a notice of discontinuance are ready, with the date for filing diarised

## Authorities

- [Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) s 29 (orders to give effect to agreements arising from mediation sessions)](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2005-028)
- [Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) s 30(4) and (5) (documents prepared as a result of a mediation session not admissible without consent)](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2005-028)
- [Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) s 31 (mediator confidentiality)](https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2005-028)

## Full text and drafting notes

The full text and the drafting notes are not part of this public page. Signed-in firm accounts can read them at https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/mediation-heads-of-agreement and through the signed-in MCP connector https://ailawframework.com/mcp/firm.

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*