Abstract
Mandatory mediation is a practice that obliges the parties to apply for mediation before filing a lawsuit in order to resolve the dispute. Mandatory mediation can be applied in three different forms: court-related, semi-compulsory and as a cause of action. In Turkish law, applying to mediation is one of the causes of action in certain disputes such as labour disputes, commercial disputes, consumer disputes and lease disputes, disputes arising from neighbourhood law, and dissolution of partnership. In this type of mediation, the Parties can terminate the mediation process at any time after attending the first meeting. Mandatory mediation reduces the cost of disputes by reducing the workload of the courts. It also allows faster resolution of disputes and encourages the public to apply for voluntary mediation by increasing the recognition of mediation. However, in order to achieve these objectives, it is important that a culture of reconciliation is sufficiently developed in a society.