Re E (A Child) (Mediation Privilege): Matters discussed in mediation should not be disclosed in Hague application
Image: Public Domain, via Piqsels A quick post (give me a break, I've already written one today ) on a case dealing with an important subject: mediation privilege. Re E (A Child) (Mediation Privilege) concerned a mother's application for the summary return of her child to the USA. The judgment related to the issue of whether matters discussed between the parties in mediation concerning child arrangements should be disclosed in connection with the application. Essentially, the mother sought to exclude those matters, and the father sought to include them. For the purposes of this post I do not need to go into the details of either the mediation or the alleged wrongful retention of the child. It was argued on behalf of the father that the discussions between the parties during mediation were relevant to the defences that he raised under the Hague Convention (including consent and acquiescence), and that in the absence of an ability to rely on the detail of those discussions he m