Family disputes involving children can be emotionally difficult and can place significant pressure on parents, children and the courts. The Alternative Dispute Resolution (‘ADR”) Children’s Court Mediation Project provides an alternative way of resolving disputes by allowing parents to communicate, negotiate and reach agreements with the assistance of a neutral mediator. The project is administered by the ACR Community NPC in partnership with ProBono.Org. Its purpose is to assist families with care, contact and parental-responsibility disputes while reducing pressure on the court system. It is a court- based pro bono mediation service.
The project began as a pilot at Protea Children’s Court in Soweto in May 2023 and was expanded to the Johannesburg Children’s Court in January 2024. The project was created in response to the challenges experienced by South Africa’s family justice system, including overloaded courts, repeated litigation and families who cannot afford private mediation. Its broader objective is to make mediation and access to justice more accessible to ordinary families.
Mediation is a process in which an independent and neutral mediator assists parties who are in conflict to communicate and negotiate a possible solution. Instead of allowing the dispute to become entirely adversarial, mediation gives the parties an opportunity to participate in finding an agreement.
This project provides free services to families who may not be able to afford private mediation or other professional assistance. The project has a social, child-centred, access to justice and institutional impact. On 14 August 2026, ProBono.Org had an opportunity to honour mediators, including experienced legal practitioners and child rights experts, whose contributions highlighted the importance of collaboration in family justice and protecting children’s needs and participation. The mediators were presented with certificates in recognition of their valuable contribution.
The project has demonstrated measurable community impact. From May 2023 to the end of May 2025 the project recorded 606 mediation sessions, of which 478 resulted in resolved Parenting Plans, rights and responsibilities agreements or Section 23 agreements. Between January 2025 and August 2026, 154 anonymous feedback responses were received, indicating that the mediation process had been clearly explained to them.
The success of the project has created opportunities for expansion. The Lenasia and Randburg Children’s Courts have invited the project to establish mediation services there, while there has also been an invitation to participate in mediation involving historic land claims. The project demonstrates that mediation can make justice more accessible, practical and child-centred, and that mediation is not merely an alternative to litigation, but can be an important part of strengthening access to justice for children and families in South Africa.
