Felicitas Paller

Senior Fellow – Austria

Felicitas Paller is a judge of the Vienna Commercial Court and previously served on the civil and commercial divisions of three different district courts. She is the founder and director of a court-annexed mediation program, begun by the Vienna Commercial Court, which has been adopted by ten other courts in Austria.

About Felicitas Paller

Felicitas Paller has served as a judge of the Vienna Commercial Court since 2001 (second instance court for commercial cases and first instance court for major commercial cases). Her previous judicial experience includes service on the civil and commercial divisions of three different district courts, handling matters involving contracts, torts, family law, enforcement and commercial disputes. She has served as a judge in Vienna since 1990.

Mediation Practice

Civil judges in Austria are trained to negotiate cases in the courtroom and settle a fair number. Interaction with lawyers and parties within the framework of a hearing to reach a settlement is common and is encompassed by the role of the judge.

Judge Paller is the founder and director of the court-annexed mediation program, begun in the Vienna Commercial Court in 2008 and since adopted by ten other courts in Austria. All programs are run according to the principles and best practices developed in the Vienna Commercial Court.

ADR Achievements and Training

  • Founder/Director, Court-Annexed Mediation Program, Vienna Commercial Court (2008-present)
  • Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship (2015)
  • UC Hastings College of Law, Center for Negotiation and Dispute Resolution, International Court-ADR Institute: “How to Design and Implement Court-Annexed Mediation Programs” (August 2015)

ADR Teaching and Mentoring

  • Serves as a mentor to fellow judges regarding how to convince litigating parties to opt for mediation within the court-annexed mediation program at the Vienna Commercial Court
  • Lecture: “Mediation as a Primary Option for Commercial Dispute Resolution,” Invitation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Conference held by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Belgrade, Serbia (2018)
  • Lecture: “The Relationship between Formal and Informal Justice: The Courts and Alternative Dispute Resolution,” by invitation of the European Law Institute (ELI) on the occasion of their annual conference, Vienna, Austria (2017)
  • Lecture: “Mediation as a Mission of Good Offices,” by invitation of the Polish Ministry of Justice, Warsaw University, Warsaw, Poland

Publications and Education

Educational Qualifications

  • Doctor iuris (Ph.D.) Karl Franzens Universität, Graz, Austria (1986)
  • Magister iuris, Karl Franzens Universität, Graz, Austria (1985)

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