(a) As used in this section, “mediation” means a process, or any part of a process, which is not court-ordered, in which a person not affiliated with either party to a lawsuit facilitates communication between such parties and, without deciding the legal issues in dispute or imposing a resolution to the legal issues, which assists the parties in understanding and resolving the legal dispute of the parties.

(b) Except as provided in this section, by agreement of the parties or in furtherance of settlement discussions, a person not affiliated with either party to a lawsuit, an attorney for one of the parties or any other participant in a mediation shall not voluntarily disclose or, through discovery or compulsory process, be required to disclose any oral or written communication received or obtained during the course of a mediation, unless (1) each of the parties agrees in writing to such disclosure, (2) the disclosure is necessary to enforce a written agreement that came out of the mediation, (3) the disclosure is required by statute or regulation, or by any court, after notice to all parties to the mediation, or (4) the disclosure is required as a result of circumstances in which a court finds that the interest of justice outweighs the need for confidentiality, consistent with the principles of law.

(c) Any disclosure made in violation of any provision of this section shall not be admissible in any proceeding.

(d) Nothing in this section shall prevent (1) the discovery or admissibility of any evidence that is otherwise discoverable merely because such evidence was presented during the course of the mediation, or (2) the disclosure of information for research or educational purposes done in cooperation with dispute resolution programs provided the parties and specific issues in controversy are not identifiable.

(P.A. 98-59, S. 1.)

Denial of motion for judgment and denial of motion for order pursuant to Subsec. (b) were not appealable final judgments; plaintiffs did not have a colorable constitutional or statutory right, independent of the exercise of discretion of trial court, which would be irretrievably lost and irreparably harmed without immediate appellate review. 82 CA 148.