Power of court or tribunal to refer parties to mediation
Section 7 of the Mediation Act, 2023 deals with power of court or tribunal to refer parties to mediation. Notwithstanding the nonsettlement of dispute under sub-section (1) of section 5, the court or tribunal may, at any stage of proceeding, refer the parties to undertake mediation. The Act came into force on 09 Oct 2023.
(1) Notwithstanding the nonsettlement of dispute under sub-section (1) of section 5, the court or tribunal may, at any stage of proceeding, refer the parties to undertake mediation.
(2) If the court or tribunal refers the parties to undertake mediation, it may pass suitable interim order to protect the interest of any party if deemed appropriate.
(3) The parties shall not be under obligation to come to a settlement in the mediation pursuant to a reference under sub-section (1).
Section 7, The Mediation Act, 2023 (Act 32 of 2023).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
This section refers to
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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K. Valli v. T. Kalayappan
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
DATE VERIFIED Final Order 2023-09-25 (order-4.pdf): Court had referred matrimonial transfer petition to High Court Mediation Centre (order 17.07.2023) under court-referral power; Final Order records successful Joint Memo of Compromise from mediation and disposes transfer petition incorporating the mediated settlement.
On this section: s.7 — power of court/tribunal to refer parties to mediation; referral produced enforceable mediated compromise recorded in Final Order.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Questions about Section 7
What have the courts held on Section 7 of the Mediation Act?
K. Valli v. T. Kalayappan (25 Sep 2023) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: s.7 — power of court/tribunal to refer parties to mediation; referral produced enforceable mediated compromise recorded in Final Order.
How do I find court cases under Section 7 of the Mediation Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Mediation Act 2023 7, section 7 Mediation Act 2023, section 7 of the Mediation Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with K. Valli v. T. Kalayappan (25 Sep 2023).
What should I read with Section 7 of the Mediation Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 5 (Pre-litigation mediation), so none of them can safely be read on its own.
When did Section 7 of the Mediation Act come into force?
Section 7 of the Mediation Act, cited as Mediation Act 2023 7, came into force on 09 Oct 2023, having been enacted on 14 Sep 2023. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 3. Definitions765 words
- 5. Pre-litigation mediation389 words
- 52. Power to make regulations349 words
- 32. Composition of Council324 words
- 38. Duties and functions of Council275 words
- 22. Confidentiality273 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.