Division 8. Alternative Dispute Resolution · Chapter 3. General Rules Relating to Mediation of Civil Cases · Article 2. Rules of Conduct for Mediators in Court-Connected Mediation Programs for Civil Cases · Last amended 2010 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceThis rule pins down exactly which mediators and mediations Article 2’s conduct standards reach — court-panel mediators selected for a case, or mediators otherwise recommended, selected, appointed, or paid by the court — while excluding judicial officers and settlement conferences held under Rule 3.1380.
(a)Circumstances applicable The rules in this article apply to mediations in which a mediator:
(1)Has agreed to be included on a superior court’s list or panel of mediators for general civil cases and is notified by the court or the parties that he or she has been selected to mediate a case within that court’s mediation program; or
(2)Has agreed to mediate a general civil case pending in a superior court after being notified by the court or the parties that he or she was recommended, selected, or appointed by that court or will be compensated by that court to mediate a case within that court’s mediation program. A mediator who is not on a superior court list or panel and who is selected by the parties is not “recommended, selected, or appointed” by the court within the meaning of this subdivision simply because the court approves the parties’ agreement to use this mediator or memorializes the parties’ selection in a court order. (Subd (a) amended effective January 1, 2010; previously amended effective January 1, 2007, and January 1, 2009.)
(b)Application to listed firms If a court’s panel or list includes firms that provide mediation services, all mediators affiliated with a listed firm are required to comply with the rules in this article when they are notified by the court or the parties that the firm was selected from the court list to mediate a general civil case within that court’s mediation program. (Subd (b) amended effective July 1, 2007; previously amended effective January 1, 2007.)
(c)Time of applicability Except as otherwise provided in these rules, the rules in this article apply from the time the mediator agrees to mediate a case until the end of the mediation in that case. (Subd (c) amended effective January 1, 2007.)
(d)Inapplicability to judges The rules in this article do not apply to judges or other judicial officers while they are serving in a capacity in which they are governed by the Code of Judicial Ethics. (Subd (d) amended effective January 1, 2007.)
(e)Inapplicability to settlement conferences The rules in this article do not apply to settlement conferences conducted under rule 3.1380. (Subd (e) amended effective January 1, 2007.)
Plain-English Summary
Court mediation programs draw on mediators in different ways — some sit on a formal court panel, others get picked by the parties and then approved or paid by the court in a one-off arrangement. Rule 3.851 draws the line around which of those arrangements trigger the mediator conduct rules. If a mediator is on a court’s list and gets notified that a case has been assigned, the rules apply. If a mediator is not on any list but the parties chose that person and asked the court to approve or note their choice in an order, the rules do not automatically apply just because the court signed off.
The rule also addresses mediation firms. When a court’s panel lists firms rather than individual mediators, every mediator affiliated with a listed firm has to follow these standards once the firm is picked for a case — the obligation runs to the individual mediator handling the matter, not just to the firm as an entity. Timing matters too: the rules take hold once a mediator agrees to take the case and stay in force until the mediation wraps up, not before and not indefinitely after.
Two categories sit outside these rules entirely. Judicial officers acting as mediators answer to the Code of Judicial Ethics instead, and settlement conferences conducted under a separate rule are a different process with different governing standards, so this code does not reach them.
Advisory Committee Comment
The following comment is published by the Judicial Council of California alongside the rule itself — not commentary from this site.
Subdivision (d). Although these rules do not apply to them, judicial officers who serve as mediators in their courts’ mediation programs are nevertheless encouraged to be familiar with and observe these rules when mediating, particularly the rules concerning subjects not covered in the Code of Judicial Ethics such as voluntary participation and self-determination.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do these rules apply to a mediator the parties picked on their own?
Generally not, unless the court also recommended, selected, appointed, or agreed to pay that mediator. A court approving the parties’ choice, or noting it in an order, does not by itself bring that mediator under these rules.
When do the mediator conduct rules start and stop applying to a case?
They apply from the point a mediator agrees to mediate a particular case through the end of that mediation, unless a specific rule says otherwise.
Do judges who mediate cases in their own courts have to follow these rules?
No. Judicial officers serving as mediators are governed by the Code of Judicial Ethics instead, though they are encouraged to stay familiar with these mediator conduct standards, especially on topics the Code of Judicial Ethics does not directly address.
Do these rules cover mandatory settlement conferences?
No. Settlement conferences conducted under the mandatory settlement conference rule are excluded from this article’s mediator conduct standards entirely.
Amendment History
Rule 3.851 amended effective January 1, 2010; adopted as rule 1620.1 effective January 1, 2003; previously amended and renumbered effective January 1, 2007; previously amended effective July 1, 2007, and January 1, 2009.
Source & verification. Rule text is reproduced verbatim from
the Judicial Council of California. Adopted by the Judicial Council of California.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
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