Minnesota Session Laws - 1984, Regular Session

  

                         Laws of Minnesota 1984 

                        CHAPTER 646-H.F.No. 994 
           An act relating to mediation; providing for mediation 
          of disputes; providing penalties; amending Minnesota 
          Statutes 1982, section 595.02; proposing new law coded 
          in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 572. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  [572.31] [MINNESOTA CIVIL MEDIATION ACT, 
CITATION.] 
    Sections 1 to 7 may be cited as the "Minnesota Civil 
Mediation Act."  
    Sec. 2.  [572.33] [DEFINITIONS.] 
    Subdivision 1.  [SCOPE.] When used in sections 1 to 7 the 
terms defined in this section have the meanings given them.  
    Subd. 2.  [MEDIATOR.] "Mediator" means a third party with 
no formal coercive power whose function is to promote and 
facilitate a voluntary settlement of a controversy identified in 
an agreement to mediate.  
    Subd. 3.  [AGREEMENT TO MEDIATE.] "Agreement to mediate" 
means a written agreement which identifies a controversy between 
the parties to the agreement, states that the parties will seek 
to resolve the controversy through mediation, provides for 
termination of mediation upon written notice from either party 
or the mediator delivered by certified mail or personally to the 
other people who signed the agreement, is signed by the parties 
and mediator and is dated.  
    Subd. 4.  [MEDIATED SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.] "Mediated 
settlement agreement" means a written agreement setting out the 
terms of a partial or complete settlement of a controversy 
identified in an agreement to mediate, signed by the parties, 
and dated.  
    Sec. 3.  [572.35] [EFFECT OF MEDIATED SETTLEMENT 
AGREEMENT.] 
   The effect of a mediated settlement agreement shall be 
determined under principles of law applicable to contract.  A 
mediated settlement agreement is not binding unless it contains 
a provision stating that it is binding and a provision stating 
substantially that the parties were advised in writing that (a) 
the mediator has no duty to protect their interests or provide 
them with information about their legal rights; (b) signing a 
mediated settlement agreement may adversely affect their legal 
rights; and (c) they should consult an attorney before signing a 
mediated settlement agreement if they are uncertain of their 
rights.  
   Sec. 4.  [572.36] [SETTING ASIDE OR REFORMING A MEDIATED 
SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.] 
    In any action, a court of competent jurisdiction shall set 
aside or reform a mediated settlement agreement if appropriate 
under the principles of law applicable to contracts, or if there 
was evident partiality, corruption, or misconduct by a mediator 
prejudicing the rights of a party.  That the relief could not or 
would not be granted by a court of law or equity is not ground 
for setting aside or reforming the mediated settlement agreement 
unless it violates public policy.  
    Sec. 5.  [527.37] [PRESENTATION OF MEDIATOR TO PUBLIC.] 
    No individual may act as a mediator pursuant to the 
Minnesota Civil Mediation Act for compensation without providing 
the individuals to the conflict with a written statement of his 
qualifications prior to beginning mediation.  The statement 
shall describe his educational background and relevant training 
and experience in the field.  
    Nothing in this section shall limit the pursuits of 
professionals consistent with their training and code of ethics; 
nor shall this section apply to service provided through a 
governmental agency.  The requirement of this section may be 
satisfied by a nonprofit corporation on behalf of its service 
providers by providing a statement of the education, training, 
and experience requirements for eligibility on its mediation 
panel.  
    A person who violates this section is guilty of a petty 
misdemeanor.  
    Sec. 6.  [572.39] [STATUTES OF LIMITATION.] 
    The running of the limitation of time within which an 
action may be brought is suspended from the date of the 
agreement to mediate until 20 days after notice of termination 
of mediation is delivered by certified mail or personally 
delivered as provided in the agreement to mediate.  
    Sec. 7.  [572.40] [SCOPE.] 
    Sections 1 to 4 do not apply to proceedings relating to the 
determination of criminal liability or proceedings brought under 
chapters 518, 518A, 518B, and 518C, or proceedings relating to 
guardianship, conservatorship, or civil commitment.  
    Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 1982, section 595.02, is 
amended to read: 
    595.02 [COMPETENCY OF WITNESSES.] 
    Every person of sufficient understanding, including a 
party, may testify in any action or proceeding, civil or 
criminal, in court or before any person who has authority to 
receive evidence, except as follows: 
    (1) A husband cannot be examined for or against his wife 
without her consent, nor a wife for or against her husband 
without his consent, nor can either, during the marriage or 
afterwards, without the consent of the other, be examined as to 
any communication made by one to the other during the marriage. 
This exception does not apply to a civil action or proceeding by 
one against the other, nor to a criminal action or proceeding 
for a crime committed by one against the other or against a 
child of either, nor to a criminal action or proceeding in which 
one is charged with homicide or an attempt to commit homicide 
and the date of the marriage of the defendant is subsequent to 
the date of the offense, nor to an action or proceeding for 
non-support, neglect, dependency, or termination of parental 
rights; 
     (2) An attorney cannot, without the consent of his client, 
be examined as to any communication made by the client to him or 
his advice given thereon in the course of professional duty; nor 
can any employee of the attorney be examined as to the 
communication or advice, without the client's consent; 
     (3) A clergyman or other minister of any religion shall 
not, without the consent of the party making the confession, be 
allowed to disclose a confession made to him in his professional 
character, in the course of discipline enjoined by the rules or 
practice of the religious body to which he belongs; nor shall a 
clergyman or other minister of any religion be examined as to 
any communication made to him by any person seeking religious or 
spiritual advice, aid, or comfort or his advice given thereon in 
the course of his professional character, without the consent of 
the person; 
     (4) A licensed physician or surgeon, dentist, or 
chiropractor shall not, without the consent of his patient, be 
allowed to disclose any information or any opinion based thereon 
which he acquired in attending the patient in a professional 
capacity, and which was necessary to enable him to act in that 
capacity; after the decease of the patient, in an action to 
recover insurance benefits, where the insurance has been in 
existence two years or more, the beneficiaries shall be deemed 
to be the personal representatives of the deceased person for 
the purpose of waiving this privilege, and no oral or written 
waiver of the privilege shall have any binding force or effect 
except when made upon the trial or examination where the 
evidence is offered or received; 
     (5) A public officer shall not be allowed to disclose 
communications made to him in official confidence when the 
public interest would suffer by the disclosure; 
     (6) Persons of unsound mind; persons intoxicated at the 
time of their production for examination, and children under ten 
years of age, who appear incapable of receiving just impressions 
of the facts respecting which they are examined, or of relating 
them truly, are not competent witnesses.  This exception does 
not apply to a child under ten years of age, in a criminal 
proceeding for intrafamilial sexual abuse as defined in section 
609.364, subdivision 10, or in a criminal proceeding under 
sections 609.342 clause (a), 609.343 clause (a), 609.344 clause 
(a), or 609.345 clause (a), who is able to describe or relate in 
language appropriate for a child of that age the events or facts 
respecting which the child is examined; 
     (7) A registered nurse, psychologist or consulting 
psychologist shall not, without the consent of his client, be 
allowed to disclose any information or opinion based thereon 
which he acquired in attending the client in a professional 
capacity, and which was necessary to enable him to act in that 
capacity; 
     (8) An interpreter for a person handicapped in 
communication shall not, without the consent of the person, be 
allowed to disclose any communication if the communication 
would, if the interpreter were not present, be privileged.  For 
purposes of this section, a "person handicapped in 
communication" means a person who, because of a hearing, speech 
or other communication disorder, or because of the inability to 
speak or comprehend the English language, is unable to 
understand the proceedings in which he is required to 
participate.  The presence of an interpreter as an aid to 
communication does not destroy an otherwise existing privilege; 
     (9) A parent or his minor child may not be examined as to 
any communication made in confidence by the minor to his 
parent.  A communication is confidential if made out of the 
presence of persons not members of the child's immediate family 
living in the same household.  This exception may be waived by 
express consent to disclosure by a parent entitled to claim the 
privilege or by the child who made the communication, or by 
failure of the child or parent to object when the contents of a 
communication are demanded. This exception does not apply to a 
civil action or proceeding by one spouse against the other or by 
a parent or child against the other, nor to a proceeding to 
commit either the child or parent to whom the communication was 
made or to place the person or property or either under the 
control of another because of his alleged mental or physical 
condition, nor to a criminal action or proceeding in which the 
parent is charged with a crime committed against the person or 
property of the communicating child, the parent's spouse, or a 
child of either the parent or the parent's spouse, or in which a 
child is charged with a crime or act of delinquency committed 
against the person or property of a parent or a child of a 
parent, nor to an action or proceeding for termination of 
parental rights, nor any other action or proceeding on a 
petition alleging child abuse, child neglect, abandonment or 
nonsupport by a parent;  
     (10) Sexual assault counselors may not be compelled to 
testify about any opinion or information received from or about 
the victim without the consent of the victim.  However, a 
counselor may be compelled to identify or disclose information 
in investigations or proceedings related to neglect or 
termination of parental rights if the court determines good 
cause exists.  In determining whether to compel disclosure, the 
court shall weigh the public interest and need for disclosure 
against the effect on the victim, the treatment relationship, 
and the treatment services if disclosure occurs.  Nothing in 
this clause exempts sexual assault counselors from compliance 
with the provisions of sections 626.556 and 626.557.  
      "Sexual assault counselor" for the purpose of this section 
means a person who has undergone at least 40 hours of crisis 
counseling training and works under the direction of a 
supervisor in a crisis center, whose primary purpose is to 
render advice, counseling or assistance to victims of sexual 
assault.  
    (11) A person cannot be examined as to any communication or 
document, including worknotes, made or used in the course of or 
because of mediation pursuant to an agreement to mediate.  This 
does not apply to the parties in the dispute in an application 
to a court by a party to have a mediated settlement agreement 
set aside or reformed.  A communication or document otherwise 
not privileged does not become privileged because of this 
paragraph.  This paragraph is not intended to limit the 
privilege accorded to communication during mediation by the 
common law. 
    Approved May 2, 1984