It is well known that Alternative Dispute Resolution schemes for the efficient and swift management of civil and commercial disputes have acquired paramount importance worldwide. The trend promoting the development of ADR techniques has been supported by European Union institutions by means of a variety of normative instruments, and in particular by the adoption of Directive 2008/52/EC on certain aspects of mediation in civil and commercial matters and Directive 2013/11/EU on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes (Directive on consumer ADR).
According to the rules laid down by Italian authorities in complying with the duty to implement Directive 2008/52/EC (statute no. 28 of 2010), the Department of Law at the Università di Pavia is accredited as a registered provider of mediation training and is included at number 93 in the official list of registered providers maintained by the Italian Ministry of Justice. The official list is available at https://mediazione.giustizia.it/ROM/AlboEntiFormazione.aspx
The Department of Law offers courses taught by mediation practitioners and experts, in compliance with the requirements provided by Ministerial Decree no. 180 of 2010. Regular courses are taught in Italian, but courses taught in English for foreign ADR professionals and academics are available as well.
For extensive information concerning the normative framework of mediation in Italy see European Parliament, ‘Italian Legislation on Mediation’, available at https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/note/join/2011/453175/IPOL-JURI_NT(2011)453175_EN.pdf