Overview

The Arbitration and Mediation Services (Equality) Bill aims to improve equality in arbitration and mediation services, enhance protection for domestic abuse victims, and address issues related to falsely claiming legal jurisdiction. It amends several existing Acts to achieve these goals.

Description

This bill makes significant changes to several Acts of Parliament:

• Equality Act 2010: Adds provisions prohibiting discrimination based on sex in arbitration services. This includes treating evidence differently based on gender, assuming unequal estate division between male and female children upon intestacy, or assuming unequal property rights between genders. It also clarifies the public sector equality duty to consider the lack of legal protection for those married according to religious practices or in polygamous households.
• Arbitration Act 1996: Prohibits discriminatory terms in arbitration agreements, such as those valuing one gender's evidence more highly than the other's, assuming unequal estate division for children based on gender, or assuming unequal property rights based on gender.
• Family Law Act 1996: Allows courts to set aside orders based on mediation or negotiated agreements if one party's consent wasn't genuine, considering factors like duress or lack of legal rights information.
• Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994: Extends protection against intimidation to domestic abuse victims assisting in investigations or acting as witnesses.
• Courts and Legal Services Act 1990: Creates a new offense for falsely claiming legal jurisdiction in court or arbitration, with a potential prison sentence of up to seven years.

Government Spending

The bill doesn't explicitly state the financial implications. However, implementing the new provisions might require additional resources for courts and other relevant bodies to enforce the changes and provide relevant training. No specific figures are provided in the bill.

Groups Affected

• Individuals involved in arbitration and mediation: Increased protection against sex-based discrimination.
• Domestic abuse victims: Enhanced protection from intimidation.
• Courts and legal professionals: New responsibilities and legal implications for compliance and enforcement.
• Individuals in polygamous relationships or those married only according to religious practice: Greater awareness of their potential lack of legal protection.
• Those falsely claiming legal jurisdiction: Risk of criminal prosecution.

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