Rule 1915 - Child Custody Cases Referral To Mediator. Procedure(a)Mandatory Mediator Conference. All cases having to do with child custody, including proceedings begun under the Divorce Code and contempt proceedings in which no resolution has been reached at the initial pre-hearing conference, shall then be referred to the Jefferson County Child Custody Mediator for a preliminary conference to attempt to reach an amicable settlement of the matter.(b)Date and Time of Conference. A date and time for the preliminary conference shall be set by the court administrator as soon as practicable after the pleading asserting the child custody issue is brought to the attention of the Court. Cost of said conference shall be borne equally by the parents and each parent shall deposit their share with the court administrator not later than seven (7) days prior to date of the scheduled conference.(c) Continuances. The child custody mediator may in his discretion continue a conference for cause shown. All applications for continuance shall be made in writing directly to the child custody mediator and counsel requesting the continuance shall first have discussed the continuance with, and attempted to obtain the agreement of, opposing counsel and said continuance shall become a part of the permanent court record. In any event, a request for a continuance must be made no less than three working days before the date set for hearing.(d)Conduct of Conference. The child custody mediator shall ascertain the issues in the action through discussion with counsel and/or the parties. He shall not take testimony and the conference shall not be of record; rather, he shall attempt to determine the relevant facts through discussion, and shall suggest or recommend a proposed settlement. The child custody mediator may discuss the action with the children concerned in the presence of counsel; for this purpose children eight years of age or older may be present for the conference. Conference procedure shall at all times be in the sole discretion of the child custody mediator. (e)Consent Orders. When the child custody mediator determines that the parties have reached full agreement concerning the matter, he shall forthwith have the parties and their counsel appear before the court stenographer to have such agreement reduced to the form of a stipulation for a consent order of court. Upon preparation and execution thereof the same shall be submitted to the court for approval and signature. If the parties can reach only partial agreement concerning the action, the child custody mediator in his discretion may dictate a consent order covering the partial agreement and refer the disputed areas to the court for decision, or may refer the entire action to the court for decision. The child custody mediator may further, in his discretion, dictate a consent order based upon the submission of a written stipulation executed by counsei and/or the parties.
(f)Failure of Party to Appear, if, when the conference is called, one party does not appear either personally or by counsel, the child custody mediator shall ascertain whether service and notice of the conference have been made upon the non-appearing party. If service and notice have been made, the child custody mediator may, in his discretion, dictate an order as in paragraph (d) granting the relief requested by the appearing party. If no party appears either personally or by counsel, the child custody mediator shall submit a report to the court, together with a proposed order to dismiss the action, in which event costs shall be assessed and collected.(g)Evaluations and Home Stuthes. If it appears to the child custody mediator that psychological evaluations and/or home stuthes are needed for ultimate resolution of the matter, he shall report that need to the court for consideration for the entry of an order of court directing that such psychological evaluations and/or home stuthes be made. Costs of such evaluations and/or stuthes shall be borne equally by the parties unless for cause shown the court directs otherwise.(h)Mediator's Report to Court When No Agreement Reached. Inthose actions where the parties cannot reach agreement, the child custody mediator shall prepare and file with the court a report, being a concise summary of the conferences which shall include the background of the action, the allegations of the parties concerning the areas of dispute, and the recommendations, if any, of the child custody mediator concerning disposition. The original of any evaluation reports and home stuthes shall be attached to such summary. The report shail include pre-trial information, which counsel shall be prepared to provide to the child custody mediator, such as lists of witnesses, exhibits, and stipulations, and an estimate of trial time. A proposed order setting the matter for hearing by the court shall also be attached to the front thereof.Adopted Jan. 15, 1985, effective 4/1/1985. Amended effective 1/1/1991.