A significant backlog of mediation files has developed at the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) due to an unprecedented increase in Applications for Mediation. This has resulted in longer wait times for assignment of files to a mediator.
The information below will keep stakeholders up-to-date as FSCO moves forward with specific initiatives to address the backlog.
FSCO has undertaken a number of initiatives to address the backlog, which have resulted in a 50 per cent increase in productivity.
The following initiatives are ongoing:
Request for Proposals (RFP) for Private Sector Dispute Resolution Services
In order to reduce the backlog, on January 16, 2012, a Request for Proposals (RFP) was posted on MERX ™, the electronic tendering system used by the Province of Ontario. The RFP is seeking up to four dispute resolution companies to provide high volume services in order to eliminate the backlog of files.
The eCalendar Application
Consent Failures
Since September 2011, FSCO has been sending out letters with an attached form to claimants and insurers, starting with the oldest files, to consider the option of failing mediation upon mutual consent.
The Consent to Fail Mediation Form requires the parties:
- to list the issues in dispute
- jointly request that the mediation be failed
- provide confirmation best efforts were made to resolve the dispute and that there is no reasonable prospect of a resolution
- must sign and return the form with a specified time period.
Upon receipt of a completed form, the file will be assigned to a mediator for review. If the mediator is of the opinion that mediation will fail, a Report of Mediation failing the issues will be issued, and the file will be closed.
Mandatory settlement blitz days
As of November 4, 2011, claimant and insurer representatives with multiple common files that have not yet been assigned to a mediator have been required to attend settlement blitz days organized by FSCO. The blitzes aim to close multiple files in a single day. Mediators are assigned to facilitate the sessions and record the outcomes.