PRESS RELEASE: The Barcelona Bar Association assumes the presidency of the FBE Mediation Commission, which will be exercised by the deputy Carles García Roqueta

The Barcelona Bar Association (ICAB) has assumed the presidency of the Mediation Commission of the European Federation of European Bar Associations (FBE). This was announced during the Congress that the FBE held in Sofia (Bulgaria) this weekend. The position will be held by the member of the Governing Board of the Barcelona Bar Association responsible for the ADR-Mediation Center, Carles García Roqueta.

Representing the Barcelona Bar Association, García Roqueta stated that “it is a real honor for the ICAB to chair the FBE Mediation Commission. I will work to promote the knowledge and use of mediation at European level ”. In this regard, he stated that while in some countries the culture of peace and dialogue is deeply rooted in society, there is still a long way to go before this conflict resolution process is used by most citizenship. He concluded: "Fear of the use of the word must be lost, because mediation is nothing more than encouraging communication between the parties to reach a mutually beneficial solution."

García Roqueta has also set himself the goal of promoting the use of ADR systems at European level and, in particular, mediation in areas where their use is less frequent, such as health or consumption, as well as restorative justice. García Roqueta also stated that work must be done to incorporate and standardize other methods such as conciliation, where the legal profession will play a completely relevant and decisive role.

Within the framework of the FBE Congress, the chairs of other commissions have also been renewed, which will be assumed by the following Colleges: Access to Justice (Lucca, Michele Lucherini); Arbitration (Palermo, Michele Calantropo); Eastern Colleges (Vojvodina, Rajko Maric); Human Rights (Poznan, Artur Wierzbicki); Promotion and Equality (Paris, Solenne Brugère); Ethics (Bilbao, María Begoña Angulo); Legal Training (Madrid, Raúl Ochoa); New Technologies (Wroclaw, Maria Dymitruk); Future of the Profession (Luxembourg, Bertrand Christmann); Unaccompanied Minors (Genoa, Céline Squaratti); Coordination of the Actions of the Schools (Cluj, Stanca Gidro); Schools of the Mediterranean (Nice, Adrien Verrier).

In addition, also on behalf of the Barcelona Bar Association, the Secretary of the Governing Board of the ICAB, Joaquim de Miquel, attended the FBE Congress and played an active role in the presentation of the ICAB's candidacy for the presidency of the Mediation Commission of the European Federation of European Bar Associations.

Professional profile of Carles García Roqueta:

He is a lawyer, arbitrator, mediator and member of the Governing Board of the Barcelona Bar Association responsible for the ADR-Mediation Center ICAB. He also chairs the Catalan Society of Health Mediation and teaches as an associate professor at the University of Barcelona and as a collaborating professor at the Open University of Catalonia, where he teaches in the area of ​​mediation and consumer protection.

García Roqueta has always been a firm defender of law and freedoms, as well as mediation, and has promoted its use in areas such as organizations, consumption and health. It is currently incorporating conciliation as an alternative and complementary resource to mediation, aware of the need to disseminate all alternatives to the courts and the legal profession. He now assumes this new and relevant responsibility in the FBE.

What is the FBE?

The European Federation of Bar Associations / Fédération des Barreaux d'Europe (FBE) was founded in Barcelona on 23 May 1992 as the successor to the Conference of the main European Bar Associations, with the aim to promote the rule of law, the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary and the right to a fair trial.

All national and local organizations, as well as Law Societies within the Council of Europe, can be members. The FBE currently has 250 members of Colleges and Councils representing more than one million lawyers.

The FBE is organized into standing committees and ad hoc committees. The former are devoted to universal and basic aspects and the latter are devoted to contingent or local needs.