§ 154.051.Appointment of Impartial Third Parties

Referral and appointment are two steps, and this section is the second.

The court may appoint an impartial third party to facilitate a procedure referred under Section 154.021.

A person the parties agree on may be appointed, if that person qualifies under this subchapter.

Agreement does not override the qualifications. The parties choose; the statute decides who is eligible to be chosen.

More than one third party may be appointed. A moderated settlement conference under Section 154.025 requires a panel, so the power to appoint several is necessary.

Appointment is permissive. Parties who have already engaged a mediator do not need the court to name one.

The appointee’s duties come from Section 154.053, the compensation from Section 154.054, and the qualified immunity for volunteers from Section 154.055.

Appointment and referral are separate decisions. A court can refer a dispute without naming anyone, leaving the parties to select a neutral themselves.

The parties’ agreement carries real weight. A neutral both sides chose starts with credibility that an assigned one has to earn, which is why the section provides for it expressly.

Appointing several answers the panel procedures. A moderated settlement conference needs a panel, and a complex mediation sometimes needs co-mediators with different backgrounds.