(a) Any tenant or landlord may request mandatory discussion of rental housing disputes by filing a written request for dispute resolution within twenty-one days of learning the facts that give rise to the dispute. The request must be filed with the city's facilitation administrator, and must provide enough factual information to outline the basic issue or issues being raised.
(b) Within seven days of receiving a written request for dispute resolution, the facilitation administrator will notify both tenant and landlord that a case has been opened and will provide a copy of the request to the responding party. The facilitation administrator will also initiate a conciliation process, to be undertaken by the facilitation administrator, other city staff, or a mediator, before mediation is scheduled.
(c) The facilitation administrator will not open dispute resolution, or will order dispute resolution closed, when it is clear from the written request that there is no substantial factual basis for the dispute, or when the dispute involves the actions or behavior of persons, or conditions, that are not within the control or responsibility of the parties; or when the dispute is frivolous, malicious or vexatious; or when further proceedings are not, in the sole judgment of the facilitation administrator, likely to be productive. Both parties will be notified of the facilitation administrator's action and shall have access to the case summary forms used by the facilitation administrator, which will not contain any confidential communications from the parties. The facilitation administrator will also order dispute resolution closed if the parties agree to engage a mediator of their own choice, so long as the party who requests the mediator agrees in writing to bear all costs related to that service.
(d) The facilitation administrator will promptly assign the request to a mediator who will contact all relevant parties to conciliate and mediate the dispute. The facilitation administrator shall have the authority to combine different disputes or different parties in the interest of efficiently addressing the disputes, provided that any party may, for reasons of confidentiality or otherwise, opt out of a combined mediation involving more than one tenant or landlord by notifying the facilitation administrator. All communications between the facilitation administrator and the parties as well as between the mediator or conciliator and the parties shall be confidential and subject to the confidentiality guarantees set forth in California Evidence Code Sections 703.5 and 1115 – 1128, as they may be amended or superseded. The mediator assigned to the case will promptly investigate and if necessary disclose any conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest to the parties as soon as the conflict or potential conflict becomes known to the mediator. At the time of disclosure, the parties will have the option of waiving any such conflict as long as the waiver is in writing. The city shall not be obligated to incur any financial obligation in order to assign a mediator. A mediator will not be assigned if there are not qualified volunteers available without cost to the city or parties.
(e) No mediation will be scheduled until at least fourteen days after the parties are notified in order to allow time for conciliation efforts before mediation. Unless all parties agree in writing to waive the time limit, the initial mediation session will be conducted within twenty-eight days of the date the written request for dispute resolution is filed. The landlord's business location shall be considered so that the mediation will be scheduled at a reasonably convenient time taking into account the distance that the landlord must travel to attend the mediation.
(f) If a mediation session is held, the mediator shall provide the parties with an opening statement explaining the nature of the process and the ground rules. Thereafter the mediator will determine the manner and course of the session, including whether to meet with the parties in caucus, provided that the general guiding principle will always be to provide the parties with a full opportunity to air the concerns giving rise to the dispute.
(g) The landlords and/or tenants involved in the dispute shall be obligated to personally appear at a mediation session scheduled by a mediator. All parties must participate in the mediation session until completion of the mediator's opening statement. All parties appearing must have the legal authority to resolve disputes arising under this chapter. Participation in mediation shall be voluntary in all respects after the opening statement. The mediator may, with the consent of all parties, schedule additional sessions as needed.
(h) No party shall be obligated to reach any specific agreement, or to reach any agreement at all, as a result of participating in conciliation or mediation communications. If an agreement is reached, it will be stated in writing by the mediator or by the parties. Any such agreement shall be confidential and will not be enforceable or usable for any purpose outside the dispute resolution process, unless all signatories agree that the document can be disclosed or used in other proceedings.
(Ord. 4728 § 1 (part), 2002)