"We don't judge, we mediate"

The City of Chemnitz is regularly looking for justices of the peace for one of its districts. What is important in this honorary position?

Stefan Buscher is a justice of the peace. His honorary position is only called this in Saxony, in other federal states they are called arbitrators. In this interview, the 58-year-old explains what he is responsible for and what is important.

What does a justice of the peace do?

Stefan Buscher: We want to make the world a little more peaceful by settling out-of-court legal disputes. We do this by conducting arbitration proceedings with the parties to a dispute.
Anyone who has a dispute contacts us and submits an application for arbitration. This application describes what the conflict is about, what claims he or she has and with whom the conflict exists. We then invite both parties to the dispute to a so-called conciliation hearing, which is confidential.

How does this mediation process work?
It is a structured process that is modelled on mediation. This means that the justice of the peace is neutral and non-partisan. He tries to mediate between the conflicting parties by encouraging them to find a joint solution.

What happens if the parties are unable to reach an agreement?
Then the conciliation hearing has failed. This is recorded in the minutes.

How often do the parties reach an agreement?
Unfortunately, the parties in conflict often fail to reach an agreement. I put this down to the fact that the conflict parties we encounter are often already in a very escalated state of conflict. That's why I also appeal to them to come to us when the conflict is perhaps only simmering very gently, because then the chances of success are greater.

Which cases are you responsible for?
We are not responsible for all legal disputes, but we are responsible for neighbour disputes, property disputes and certain criminal disputes. In neighbour disputes, for example, the distance of plants from the property boundary or the height of plants plays a role. Property law conflicts concern, for example, the issue of invoices: a tradesman issues an invoice and you do not agree with the invoice because you think it is too high. Criminal law disputes are rather rare.
We do not judge, we mediate between the conflicting parties. We do not adjudicate and we do not advise on legal issues.

However, there are also certain issues that you do not deal with.
We are not responsible for all family law matters. For example, when we talk about divorce or custody. We are also not responsible for labour law issues such as dismissal or severance pay.

What cases have you had recently?
Recently, I've mainly been involved in neighbour disputes. For example, it was about the height of hedges, which in turn can shade properties. But also completely different issues, such as a garage community where a member of this garage community had the impression that a member of the board was not adhering to the garage community's statutes. And there, too, you look: Is that really the case?
I also recently had an attempt at reconciliation. A couple had separated and the right of custody and residence for their child had been awarded to the father by the courts. Later, the father felt repeatedly slandered by the mother because she made allegations that he felt were untrue. Until he filed a private lawsuit, for which this attempt at atonement was necessary.
In the process, you try to reach an agreement via the justice of the peace so that the case doesn't end up in court.

Why did you become a justice of the peace?
I became a justice of the peace because I have been dealing with conflicts all my life. I am a journalist and was later responsible for crisis communication at a company. I am currently a business and school mediator.
I think it's also a good foundation to know what conflicts are and to know the means and methods for resolving conflicts. Another important prerequisite is that you like people.

What is particularly important to you in your work as a justice of the peace?
It is important to me to guide the conflicting parties to find a solution themselves. It's a big misunderstanding to think that we have to prescribe a solution. It's not about us, we just mediate. And neutrality and non-partisanship, which we attach great importance to, are also very important.

You are supported by the local court and the city of Chemnitz, what does that mean?
We are never alone, especially when it comes to legal issues, because the local court has the technical supervision. We have someone assigned to us at Chemnitz Local Court who answers our technical questions very quickly and precisely. The City of Chemnitz is available to us for all organisational questions and has also assigned a dedicated contact person for this purpose. We have our own office in the Technical Town Hall, where we can conduct the arbitration hearings.

Justices of the Peace are honorary arbitrators in the Free State of Saxony. They are elected for five years by the city council, confirmed by the local court and are under its supervision.

The city of Chemnitz is divided into six arbitration districts. A justice of the peace is responsible for each of these districts.