RECONCILING RELATIONSHIPS: A CRITICAL APPRAISAL OF MEDIATION AS A TRANSFORMATIVE ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION MECHANISM IN INDIAN FAMILY LAW

AUTHORS – MANYATA SINGH* & PROF. DR. LAKSHMI PRIYA VINJAMURI**

* LAW COLLEGE DEHRADUN, UTTARANCHAL UNIVERSITY, DEHRADUN, UTTARAKHAND, INDIA

** ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, LAW COLLEGE DEHRADUN, UTTARANCHAL UNIVERSITY, DEHRADUN, UTTARAKHAND, INDIA

BEST CITATION – MANYATA SINGH & PROF. DR. LAKSHMI PRIYA VINJAMURI, RECONCILING RELATIONSHIPS: A CRITICAL APPRAISAL OF MEDIATION AS A TRANSFORMATIVE ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION MECHANISM IN INDIAN FAMILY LAW, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (9) OF 2026, PG. 08-17, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344. DOI – https://doi.org/10.65393/IJLRV6I92

Abstract

The adjudicatory model of dispute resolution, deep-rooted in the Indian legal machinery, has been unable to keep up with the finesse and nuances of the emotionally charged nature of family law disputes. As family courts of the nation keep getting clogged with matrimonial cases, child custody disputes, and succession cases, mediation has increasingly become a viable and sensible solution. This chapter takes an intensive doctrinal and socio-legal analysis of mediation as an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) tool in the context of Indian family law. Based on the legislative tools such as the Family Courts Act, 1984, Section 89 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, and the newly introduced Mediation Act, 2023, the chapter traces the formal and informal boundaries of mediation practice in India. It critically discusses landmark judicial pronouncements most notably, K. Srinivas Rao v. D.A. Deepa, Afcons Infrastructure Ltd. v. Cherian Varkey Construction Co., and Salem Advocate Bar Association v. Union of India, to track the changing support of consensual dispute resolution by the judiciary. The three thematic analytical chapters discuss in turn the legislative framework on which family mediation is based, the jurisprudential history that has influenced its practice, and the institutional obstacles that still limit its efficacy. The chapter concludes that, although mediation has significant transformative potential in humanising the resolution of family disputes, its effectiveness depends on specific institutional changes, such as professionalisation of mediators, establishment of a strong regulatory oversight authority, and incorporation of trauma-informed frameworks into mediation practice. The chapter ends with a set of policy and legislative reform recommendations that will help to solidify the role of mediation as a valid, culturally acceptable, and constitutionally viable component of family justice in India.

Keywords

Mediation; Family Law; Alternative Dispute Resolution; Section 89 Code of Civil Procedure; Matrimonial Disputes; Mediation Act 2023