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Law and practice · updated November 2026

What the law and the courts say about mediation

Briefly and with references to the rules: when an agreement can be enforced, how much of the court fee comes back and what is changing in regulation.

Timeline

The line runs from a voluntary procedure to an enforceable result and to the debate on mandatory mediation in family disputes.

  1. 2010Mediation Law No. 193-FZMediation established as a voluntary procedure: confidentiality, equality of the parties, independence of the mediator.
  2. 2019Reform of conciliation proceduresFrom 25 October 2019 the procedure codes introduced judicial conciliation and negotiations; a notarised mediation agreement became an enforcement document.
  3. 2019Rules of judicial conciliationBy Resolution No. 41 of 31.10.2019 the Plenum of the Supreme Court approved how judicial conciliators work.
  4. 2025Loans settled through mediation — under notarial controlSince 5 February 2025, to certify a mediation agreement in a loan dispute the notary needs a bank document confirming the money was transferred non-cash; the notary verifies it with the bank (Law No. 234-FZ).
  5. 2025Plenum guidance on court feesAt the end of 2025 the Supreme Court Plenum adopted Resolution No. 39 on paying court fees, including when a case ends in settlement.
  6. 2026Ministry of Justice draft lawThe Ministry of Justice was preparing a draft law on improving mediation regulation for Q1 2026; a self-regulation model for mediators is under discussion.
  7. 2026–27Mediation in divorceThe government plans to prepare proposals on mandatory pre-trial mediation in family disputes, above all in divorces involving children.

Court practice

Five conclusions that matter to the parties

A notarised agreement is enforced by bailiffs

Courts recognise a notarised mediation agreement as an enforcement document. If payment is late, it can go straight to the bailiffs or to the debtor’s bank.

Art. 12(5) of Law 193-FZ; Art. 12 of Law 229-FZ

Enforceability does not cancel the legality check

In disputes about children, the notarial form does not make a child an “object of enforcement”. Where predictability matters, it is better to have the arrangements approved by a court as a settlement agreement.

Family Code; Ch. 14.1 of the Civil Procedure Code

Settlement at first instance means 70% of the fee back

The earlier the parties agree, the bigger the refund: 70%, 50% or 30%. The parties can allocate the rest in the settlement agreement itself.

Art. 333.40(1)(3) of the Tax Code

What is said in mediation does not become evidence

Admissions and proposals made by the parties during conciliation are not used in court without their consent. This allows options to be discussed openly.

Art. 5 of Law 193-FZ

A mediator and a judicial conciliator are not the same

A judicial conciliator is a retired judge from the Supreme Court’s list who works within a case. A mediator works both before court and outside the proceedings, under a contract.

Supreme Court Rules No. 41 of 31.10.2019

Real cases

Eight cases: when the agreement worked and when it didn’t

  • A41-62091/2024

    10th Arbitrazh Court of Appeal · 04.02.2025

    The agreement stood

    Difficulties with enforcement are no reason to refuse the bailiffs

    The mediation agreement was approved as a settlement agreement. The debtor challenged the opening of enforcement proceedings: title to the properties had not been registered because of a typo and an attachment. The court refused: such uncertainties are resolved during enforcement, and an attachment over another debt of the debtor does not release him from his obligations under the agreement.

  • SIP-1069/2022

    Intellectual Property Court · 17.05.2023

    The agreement stood

    A trademark dispute ended in settlement

    The parties resolved a dispute over early termination of a service mark for non-use through mediation. The court approved the mediation agreement as a settlement agreement.

  • A40-247165/22

    Moscow Arbitrazh Court · 19.05.2023

    The agreement stood

    A cottage community agreed on its infrastructure

    Already during the proceedings, the parties decided in mediation how to reimburse the costs of maintaining shared infrastructure. The court approved the mediation agreement as a settlement agreement.

  • A40-209370/2022

    9th Arbitrazh Court of Appeal · 17.05.2023

    The agreement stood

    A bank may not charge a fee for enforcement

    A bank withheld 831,000 ₽ as a fee for enforcing a notarised mediation agreement. The court found this unlawful: the bank is required by law to execute an enforcement document.

  • A76-9068/2021

    Chelyabinsk Region Arbitrazh Court · 13.02.2023

    The agreement stood

    An agreement that improved the debtor’s position stood

    A creditor in bankruptcy challenged a guarantee and a notarised mediation agreement. The court refused: the agreement extended the repayment period on terms more favourable to the debtor.

  • A76-42626/2021

    Arbitrazh Court of the Urals Circuit · 22.05.2023

    The agreement did not pass

    You cannot bar yourself from appealing

    The settlement agreement repeated the mediation agreement: the defendant promised not to appeal the judgment, the claimant to drop all related claims. The courts refused to approve it as restricting access to justice.

  • A60-48634/2022

    Sverdlovsk Region Arbitrazh Court · 14.02.2023

    The agreement did not pass

    Mediation as a cover is invalid

    On a prosecutor’s claim, notarised mediation agreements used to get around an account freeze were declared invalid; 19.6 million ₽ was recovered for the state.

  • A43-35746/2022

    Nizhny Novgorod Region Arbitrazh Court · 28.03.2023

    The agreement stood

    A high contract price is not in itself grounds for annulment

    The prosecutor challenged a contract and a mediation agreement over an inflated price. The court dismissed the claim: sham transaction and bad faith were not proven. The decision was appealed.

Based on a review of case law for February–May 2023 on the медиаторы.рф portal and the ruling of the 10th Arbitrazh Court of Appeal of 04.02.2025; texts of the rulings are in the arbitrazh case file kad.arbitr.ru.

Context: courts and notaries in 2025

−23%

civil cases at first instance in 2025 — about 6.8 million fewer than a year earlier

84%

of 21.8 million civil cases with decisions were closed by a court order

826,000

family disputes reached the courts in 2025

+14%

more mediation agreements were certified by notaries in the first 9 months of 2025 than in the same period of 2024; Moscow leads

According to the Judicial Department at the Supreme Court, the results of the judges’ meeting (February 2026) and the Federal Notary Chamber.

Sources

  • Federal Law No. 193-FZ of 27.07.2010 “On the Mediation Procedure” (in Russian)
  • Federal Law No. 197-FZ of 26.07.2019 (conciliation procedures) (in Russian)
  • Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court No. 41 of 31.10.2019 (in Russian)
  • Art. 333.40 of the Russian Tax Code (in Russian)
  • Federal Law No. 234-FZ of 08.08.2024 (certification of mediation agreements on loans) (in Russian)
  • Ruling of the 10th Arbitrazh Court of Appeal of 04.02.2025 in case No. A41-62091/2024 (in Russian)
  • Statistics of the Judicial Department at the Supreme Court for 2025 (in Russian)
  • Federal Notary Chamber: mediation agreements in the first 9 months of 2025 (in Russian)
  • Review of practice on mediation agreements, медиаторы.рф (February–May 2023, in Russian)

Reference material; it does not replace a lawyer’s advice. The mediator represents neither party and does not guarantee the outcome of a dispute.

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