A note from the Chair
A somewhat belated welcome to 2025!
Since our last newsletter, there have been a number of changes to the AMDRAS Board, with former Chairs Peter Condliffe and Christopher Boyle, along with Linda Kochanski leaving us at November’s AGM by operation of the AMDRAS Constitution (term of office). Although much gratitude has been expressed publicly since their departure, I take this opportunity to personally thank Peter, Christopher and Linda for their respective contributions to the Board over many years. Their commitment to the mediation and dispute resolution community in Australia cannot be overstated, nor can their contributions to the transition from NMAS to AMDRAS. I have been extremely fortunate to work closely with Peter, Christopher and Linda since becoming elected to the Board in 2019, and am grateful for their collective mentorship, support, and friendship.
I also take this opportunity to thank Miriam Ziegler for her contribution as a Director of the Board. Miriam’s sharp intellect, diplomacy and passion for the work of the Board will be sorely missed.
Last but certainly not least, we said goodbye to our longstanding secretariat, Jenny Watson, who is enjoying her well-earned retirement by travelling the globe. Unsurprisingly given her spirit of kindness, Jenny has offered to remain available as an ongoing resource, which will certainly be called on given her knowledge of NMAS / AMDRAS and the close ties that she has created with our members and stakeholders.
With change comes opportunity and fresh insights, and in this regard, we have been fortunate to welcome Ange Beasley and Adam Rosser, and more recently Danielle Jaku-Greenfield to the Board.
We have also welcomed Sarah Friesen as our new secretariat, who has already demonstrated an ability to absorb a mountain of new information, and levels of autonomy and patience that are required in the role.
The first agenda item for the newly constituted Board was to review the existing structure of the Board, by resetting and renaming our various committees to assist with the transition from NMAS to AMDRAS.
The new structure includes an Application and Assessment Committee, Training & Accreditation Committee, Member Engagement & Complaints Committee, Promotion & Marketing Committee, and Standards Committee, with a director from our five-member executive appointed as the convener of each committee. It is hoped this structure will place the Board in a good position to support our members over the coming months.
To this end, it has certainly been a busy start to the year, with many RAP and RTP applications flowing in. Thank you to all members who have submitted applications, as well as those who have provided feedback on the standards, and the accompanying application forms and guidelines. As may be expected with the introduction of a new system, oversights and inconsistencies in certain materials have been revealed in the process of assessing applications and responding to feedback, which we are
looking to cure as soon as practicable. There have also been some delays in assessing applications, which we are slowly getting on top of. We thank those impacted for their patience and understanding. Rest assured; the Board is working extremely hard to support our members through the transition to AMDRAS and will continue to do so during this important period.
It is with a level of excitement that we have recently granted AMDRAS RAP and RTP status to a number of our members, along with accreditation to our first Honorary Leading Mediator. We have also received our first application for an AMDRAS specialisation, and applications for alternative pathways for advanced mediator status.
A reminder to all that intend to continue as RAPs and RTPs post 1 July 2025, you need to apply for Board approval, ideally over the coming weeks to ensure that approvals are in place before the transition date. Application forms and guidelines for RAPs and RTPs can be found on the AMDRAS website.
Please keep your eye out for online webinars, notices, forms and guidelines that will continue to be held and published over the coming weeks to assist members with the transition.
Yours faithfully,
Stephen Dickinson
AMDRAS Board Chair
AMDRAS Website
Work continues behind the scenes to build the AMDRAS website and a National Register that will accommodate the accreditation levels and specialisations when they become recognised. The Board has made a significant investment of time and money to upgrade and update these systems, and we’ll provide an update on the transition arrangements and training for Recognised Accreditation Bodies (RAPs) once we have the transition timeline in place.
An updated register of Recognised Providers, RAPs and RTPs is also being constructed to provide additional information about certificate courses under the AMDRAS.
Privacy of RTPs and RAPs Applications
The AMDRAS Board have been very busy considering and assessing the RTP and RAP applications as they come in and have appreciated the work that people and organisations have put into collating all of the information required.
The Board want to remind people that we take privacy and confidentially very seriously and have several measures in place to ensure that information sharing is limited, and that only those that need to have access to submissions, do. Information is limited to the Application and Assessment Committee members, and Conflicts of Interest are discussed at each meeting before information is shared or discussed. If necessary, and with an abundance of caution, Board members will and have
removed themselves from conversations or assessment discussions where there may be a risk of real or perceived conflicts. We want to assure people that there is much rigour in place around this very important issue and we recognise that commercial interests, intellectual property and privacy must be protected.
If anyone has any concerns regarding their application, please be sure to make contact with the Board to arrange a time to discuss.
Closure of the NSW Community Justice Centre
Some of you will now be aware of the recent decision made by the NSW government to defund and close all NSW Community Justice Centre (CJC) at the end of the current financial year.
The CJC has provided a mediation and conflict management service for the people of NSW since 1980. CJC was first established as a pilot program by the Community Justice Centres (Pilot Project) Act 1980 (NSW). The NSW Law Foundation reviewed the pilot program positively in 1982. CJC became a permanent service in 1983, with the passing of the Community Justice Centres Act 1983 (NSW).
The CJC mandate is to provide a free, accessible, timely and confidential service across NSW to assist people to prevent, manage and resolve disputes. CJC employs about 20 staff and over 60 nationally accredited mediators throughout NSW, takes over 8000 enquiries every year and conducts on average 750 mediation sessions annually. With an agreement rate of over 80% for non-court referred matters, and with nearly 90% of users of the service satisfied that the assistance CJC provided helped in resolving their dispute, the loss of the service will be significant to the NSW community.
The AMDRAS Board has been very concerned to hear the news of the closure of the CJC and as such has written a leter of support to the Director of the CJC, and the corresponding government department, to reiterate the importance and value of this service.
Below is a link to an online petition against the NSW government’s plan to defund and close the NSW CJC. Although only NSW residents are eligible to sign the petition, the AMDRAS Board is sharing the link to encourage people to show support and express their views.
Welcome Kits for RAPs and RTPs
As the Board starts to approve new applications for RTPs and RAPs, we thought it prudent to create a “welcome kit” containing induction information for members to onboard to the new AMDRAS environment. It is the intent that this kit will be issued to each approved applicant, and will contain at least the following:
- Welcome and approval letter
- AMDRAS Logos (for use by RTPs, RAPs and their members)
- Confirmation of contact details to maintain our email distribution list
- Board and commitee information
- RTP or RAP specific reporting requirements to serve as a reminder
- Website information and contact details for Board
If you have suggestions for any other information that may be handy to include in this welcome kit to support you and your organisation, please be sure to let us know so we can consider inclusion.
National Mediation Conference 2025
As many of you will be aware, the National Mediation Conference is an established feature of the dispute resolution landscape since it was first convened in 1992.
Held every second year, this year it will be held on Gadigal Country, Sydney from 21 – 24 September.
The theme for this conference is “The Peace Equation: Crafting and Connecting”.
The AMDRAS Board looks forward to this event and hopes to engage with many of our members at this immersive event. The program structure for the event is:
Sunday 21 September: First Nations Cultural Day & Welcome Function (evening)
Monday 22 September: Conference opening and full day program
Tuesday 23 September: Full day program
Wednesday 24 September: Full day program; Conference closing event (mid-late afternoon)
For more information about NMC2025, please click here
Research Grants
You may be aware that the AMDRAS Board has partnered with organisations or individuals in recent years to conduct research, and the Board has invested in this. This year the Board has made the decision not to fund any research projects as we invest in upgrade to the website and national register, and other elements to support the implementation of the new AMDRAS. The Board will review this position again next year and consider future research projects in due course.
Housekeeping
We know that our members like to promote their accreditation or AMDRAS membership, but just a friendly reminder to all RAPs, RTPs and members to remove our logo if you are no longer accredited or recognised.
This means removing logos or any AMDRAS reference from websites, letterhead or other templates, signature blocks and signage. You may also need to remind your members from time to time that if they have not maintained their individual mediator accreditation; this reminder applies to them also.
Do you have a question?
the AMDRAS Board is to promote and administer the AMDRAS strategically, but the operationalising of the standards sits primarily with RPs. We would encourage you to set up good communication channels with your members, to ensure they have a clear avenue to come to you first. Matters may be escalated to the Board if local action doesn’t adequately address a member’s enquiry.
It is not the role of the Board to respond to general enquiries on training, how to become an accredited mediator or process applications to become an accredited mediator. These enquiries will always be directed back to RPs.
Some helpful information and resources you may wish to share:
- Review the Frequently Asked Questions Frequently Asked Questions – AMDRAS
- Contact a Recognised Provider MSB Member List
Would you like to apply as a Recognised Provider to provide training or accreditation under the AMDRAS? You can find more information and the application forms here Resources – AMDRAS
Do you have a specific enquiry that requires the involvement of the AMDRAS board? Please use the enquiry form Contact – AMDRAS and the Secretariat will bring your enquiry to the attention of the board.