Dispute avoidance, arbitration and mediation

Whether it is a divorce agreement, inheritance settlement or notarial mediation in accordance with the Property Rights Settlement Act: the involvement of a notary not only helps to avoid future disputes, but also to resolve a dispute once it has arisen.

As holders of a public office, we notaries are active in the entire field of preventive administration of justice. Through our supervisory and advisory function, we help in many ways to avoid disputes from the outset or to settle disputes that have already arisen by way of an amicable solution. But even where no agreement is possible, we notaries can resolve a dispute as arbitrators due to our independent and impartial position and our expertise. Involving a notary thus avoids lengthy and costly disputes in court.

When contracts are concluded, disputes between the various parties involved in a contract often do not even arise because notaries are involved from the outset as professional advisors - during the consultation, the preparation of drafts, the actual conclusion of the contract (notarization) and the execution (implementation). In all these phases, we notaries, unlike lawyers, are committed to the interests of both parties.

Due to our legal position as independent and impartial advisors to the parties involved, we ensure a fair balance of interests for all contracting parties. The statutory duties of clarification, examination and instruction as well as the prescribed formalities in accordance with the Notarization Act help to ensure that open questions and problems are clarified in advance and in connection with the conclusion of the contract. The notarial deed is formulated clearly, unambiguously and without any open points. As a public deed, it provides full proof of the notarized transaction; as an enforcement title, it saves the need to go to court.

Four advantages of notarial mediation stand out in particular: