An analysis of the key challenges to the widespread use of mediation in the Turkish construction industry

Purpose – The Turkish Ministry of Justice submitted the Draft Law on mediation in legal disputes, which was predicated on the European Council (EC) Directive on certain aspects of mediation in civil and commercial matters, to the Turkish Parliament in June 2008. Contentious arguments have followed on the provisions of the Draft Law as well as on the overall applicability of mediation in Turkey. The purpose of this paper is to examine the context surrounding the new mediation phenomenon in order to identify the key challenges awaiting its widespread use in the Turkish construction industry.Design/methodology/approach – Two complementary approaches were adopted in this paper. First, an analysis of the most debated papers of the Draft Law is carried out to determine the potential problems associated with the legislation by making comparisons with the EC mediation directive and mediation laws in some of the member states. Second, a series of structured interviews are organized among the Turkish construction i...