Md. Rule 17-303 (2026)

(a) Limited to Qualified Individuals.

(1) Court-Designated Mediator. A mediator designated by the court or pursuant to court order shall possess the qualifications prescribed in Rule 17-304 (a).

(2) Court-Designated Settlement Conference Chair. A settlement conference chair designated by the court or pursuant to court order shall possess the qualifications prescribed in Rule 17-304 (b).

(b) Designation Procedure.

(1) Court Order. The court by order may designate an individual to conduct the ADR or may direct the ADR Office, on behalf of the court, to select a qualified individual for that purpose.

(2) Duty of ADR Office. If the court directs the ADR Office to select the individual, the ADR Office may select the individual or may arrange for an ADR organization to do so. An individual selected by the ADR Office or by the ADR organization has the status of a court-designated mediator or settlement conference chair.

(3) Discretion in Designation or Selection. Neither the court nor the ADR Office is required to choose at random or in any particular order from among the qualified individuals. They should endeavor to use the services of as diverse a range of qualified individuals as practicable. The court or ADR Office may consider, in light of the issues and circumstances presented by the action or the parties, any special training, background, experience, expertise, or temperament of the available prospective designees.

Committee note: Courts are encouraged to use a broad range of practitioners that reflect the diversity of the parties who appear before the courts.

(4) ADR Practitioner Selected by Agreement of Parties. If the parties agree on the record to participate in ADR but inform the court of their desire to select an individual of their own choosing to conduct the ADR, the court may (A) grant the request and postpone further proceedings for a reasonable time, or (B) deny any request for postponement and proceed with a scheduled trial.

Source: This Rule is new.

Credits

[Adopted Nov. 1, 2012, eff. Jan. 1, 2013. Amended Nov. 13, 2024, eff. July 1, 2025.]