Court Based Mediation
Cape Mediation is a Supreme Judicial Court approved program sanctioned by the Massachusetts District Courts. Since 1989, we have provided quality court-based mediation to the communities of Barnstable and Nantucket Counties and supported our courts in their work to solve challenging conflicts and resolve disputes. We generally service 750 cases a year, with an overall agreement rate of 80%.
Court Based Mediation Services
Cape Mediation provides no-fee consumer issues mediation services in a Summary Process Mediation Program in Barnstable, Falmouth, and Orleans. We offer a Small Claims Mediation Program in Barnstable, Falmouth, Nantucket, and Orleans.
Examples of the types of cases we mediate:
- Auto Repairs
- Auto Sales
- Business Services
- Debt Collection
- Health Care
- Home Improvement
- Real Estate
- Landlord/Tenant Matters
Cape Mediation offers the parties the opportunity to discuss their cases in a safe, neutral, and structured way.
Cape Mediation has been providing mediation services for this court in the fields of summary process and small claims for over a decade. These services are of extraordinary value to both the court and the parties.
(Robert A Welsh II, First Justice of the Orleans District Court)
Civil Conciliation Program Services
A Civil Conciliation Program in Barnstable started March 2017. The program provides conciliation for litigants at the pretrial for the civil docket with no fee. Volunteer lawyers are involved in select civil cases pending before the District Court.
Many of our litigants are either self represented or are represented on a limited assistance basis. For many litigants, time in court is time out of work or school, and translates to increased costs for transportation and child care, as well as increased legal costs. A case that is resolved fairly with the parties’ agreement, at a pretrial stage, represents a success for both the court and the litigants. Conciliation will almost certainly facilitate these kinds of successes.
(Judge Kathryn Hand, First Justice of the Barnstable District Court)
