Are you thinking about a transfer of your NMAS / AMDRAS national accreditation as a mediator to Mediation Institute? 

This page will give you more information about the process to transfer and help you consider the pros and cons. 

First a couple of basic points. 

You can have only one Accrediting Body

You can only be accredited under NMAS or AMDRAS with one Recognised Accreditation Provider (RAP) but you can be a member of multiple professional bodies. 

If you want to change the organisation that is your accrediting body, you can request a transfer.  If you just want to access our Professional Development or other benefits you can have Mediation Institute as your 2nd Membership Organisation, there is no requirement to transfer. 

Mi Provides complaint handling and PD

• Normally your Recognised Accreditation Provider will provide you with complaint handling and professional development support. It appears that some don’t. 
• Mediation Institute provides our NMAS / AMDRAS members with independent complaint handling and lots of free professional development support. 
• If your RAP doesn’t then it may be beneficial to transfer 

Mi Does not have a Group Insurance policy for Professional Indemnity

We encourage members to take out your own professional indemnity and public liability insurance. As a mediator the premium is a minimum premium amount. We can refer you to insurance underwriters who should be able to write a policy for you for about $350. 

If you are currently using a group /shared cover policy with your accreditation body you will need to ensure that you have your own insurance unless you are covered by an employer or statutory immunity for all mediation work you do. Being covered by Professional Indemnity insurance or having the risk covered in an alternative way (statutory immunity) is a mandatory requirement for NMAS / AMDRAS accreditation. 

Are you on a “members only” panel?

•  Some Recognised Accreditation Providers (RAPs) have panels that provide work but are only available to the mediators who accredit through them.  
• If moving from your current provider will mean you are no longer on a panel that is providing you with a reasonable quantity of work that may not be in your best interest. 
• Mediation Institute now offers a Professional Development membership for those who can’t or don’t want to transfer their accreditation but who would like to access our professional development activities without having to pay a per event fee. 

Mediation Institute panels

• We have invested in software that will allow us to host a number of specialist dispute resolution panels. 
• Panel listings are available for our NMAS/AMDRAS accredited mediators but also to our Practitioner Members. Practitioner Membership is available to NMAS/AMDRAS accredited mediators who are accredited with a different RAP as well as registered Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners and Certified Family Group Conference Facilitators. 

Mid-term or at renewal?

If you transfer your accreditation mid-term we will do a pro-rata of our accreditation fee from the date you transfer until your renewal date. Your renewal date does not change. 

Your former RAP is unlikely to refund your membership fee paid to them so you would have an additional cost of almost $16 per month compared to if you stayed with them until your renewal.