FOLLOWING the government's bid to unclog court dockets, Supreme Court Associate Justice Angelina Gutierrez inaugurated the first mediation center in the country Friday at the Baguio City Hall of Justice.
Sandoval also administered the oaths of accredited mediators from Baguio, Benguet and La Union.
Some 30 cases pending in the different Regional Trial Courts in Baguio are up for judicial dispute resolution, said RTC Branch 60 Presiding Judge Edilberto Claravall.
Most of these cases involve rescission of contracts, estafa, nullification of foreclosure sale, libel, collection of sums of money, recovery of ownership and petition for the issuance of an injunction and writ of preliminary injunction, among others.
The Judicial Dispute Resolution (JDR) is an institutionalized alternative dispute mechanism in the judicial system.
Through the JDR, judges would act as conciliators and mediate opposing parties. Cases that could be mediated may include civil cases, settlement of estates and cases covered by the Rule on Summary Procedure, cases cognizable by the lupong tagapamaya under the Katarungang Pambarangay Law, the civil aspect of the Bouncing Check Law, theft and the civil aspect of quasi offenses under Title 14 of the Revised Penal Code.
The JDR is pilot tested in five model court sites in the country, including Pampanga, Negros Occidental, La Union and Cagayan de Oro City.
The JDR was introduced in Baguio last July. For three months, the Baguio JDR disposed off 339 cases by way of compromise agreement. From October to December, 420 cases have also been acted on, resulting in an increase to 23.9 percent the actual number of cases disposed. (Rimaliza Opiña)
