Mediation and planning disputes (John Pugh-Smith for Local Government Lawyer)

Despite early encouragement by Central Government and the publication of guides to mediation in planning, over the past ten years there has been less progress than might have been hoped in establishing the use of mediation and related facilitation techniques as a tool for tackling planning disputes.

John Pugh-Smith of 39 Essex Chambers and John Howell MP explain why fresh impetus should be given to the use of mediation to help resolve a wide range of current matters within planning in a recent edition of Local Government Lawyer. To read the full article, visit here.

From his long experience as an alternative dispute resolver, John Pugh-Smith is also giving evidence to the next session of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Alternative Dispute Resolution on 4^th May 2020 on the successes and continuing challenges of this type of process. He will be including within his presentation the encouraging results of recent surveys of the respective memberships of the Planning & Environment Bar Association and the Compulsory Purchase Association.