Consumer Mediator explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Regulations 3 and 4 answer two questions that anyone dealing with consumer mediation asks: who can sit on the panel of mediators of a Consumer Commission, and who cannot. Regulation 3 lists nine classes of eligible people, from retired Supreme Court Judges to experts with fifteen years' experience. Regulation 4 lists four personal disqualifications and a separate bar in a particular case on a mediator connected with the dispute or the parties.
The regulations were made by the National Commission under section 103 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (F. No. A-105/MR/NCDRC/2020, 24 July 2020). This article takes them as amended up to the Consumer Protection (Mediation) Amendment Regulations, 2022 (6 July 2022), which amend only regulation 9. Later amendments should be checked on the website of the National Commission or the Department of Consumer Affairs. Regulation 9, on training, is not described here.
Nine classes are eligible for empanelment with a Mediation Cell, including retired Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, retired Members of a Consumer Commission, an advocate with a minimum of ten years at the Bar and a person with at least five years in mediation or conciliation. A person is disqualified if adjudged insolvent, facing pending criminal charges involving moral turpitude, convicted of such an offence, or facing pending or concluded disciplinary punishment. In a given dispute, anyone connected with the subject matter or the parties is disqualified from being nominated in that case.
Parties and advisers who need to check a proposed mediator or prepare an objection can ask for legal dispute resolution support before the first session.
Regulation 1: title and commencement
Regulation 1 gives the short title, the Consumer Protection (Mediation) Regulations, 2020, and says they come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette. They are made under section 103 of the Act. The Mediation Cell and the panel come from the Act: see section 74 and sections 75 to 78.
Regulation 2: definitions
| Term | Meaning in short |
|---|---|
| Act | The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 |
| Consumer Commission | A District Commission under section 28, a State Commission under section 42 or the National Commission under section 53 |
| Mediation Cell | A Consumer Mediation Cell under section 74(1), including the Cell attached to the regional benches of the National Commission |
| party | A party to a consumer dispute or any other proceeding pending before a Consumer Commission |
| rules | Rules made under the Act |
| section | A section of the Act |
| settlement | A settlement arrived at in the course of mediation in respect of all or some of the issues in a consumer dispute pending before a Commission |
Words not defined but defined in the Act or the rules take that meaning. Note that "settlement" covers a settlement of all or some of the issues, so a partial settlement counts.
Regulation 3: who is eligible
Regulation 3 says the following persons "shall be eligible to be empanelled with a Mediation Cell".
| Item | Eligible class |
|---|---|
| (i) | Retired Judges of the Supreme Court of India |
| (ii) | Retired Judges of the High Courts |
| (iii) | Retired Members of a Consumer Commission |
| (iv) | Retired District and Session Judges, retired Additional District and Session Judges or other retired Members of the Higher Judicial Services of a State |
| (v) | Retired Judicial officers having experience of not less than ten years |
| (vi) | An advocate with a minimum experience of ten years at the Bar |
| (vii) | Mediators empanelled with the Mediation Cell of the Supreme Court, a High Court or a District Court |
| (viii) | A person with experience of at least five years in mediation or conciliation |
| (ix) | Experts or other professionals with at least fifteen years' experience, or retired senior bureaucrats or retired executives |
Three observations. First, eligibility is not the same as empanelment: the list says who may be empanelled, and the selection process is in regulation 5. Second, the experience thresholds differ by class: ten years for retired judicial officers and for advocates, five years for those with mediation or conciliation experience and fifteen years for experts and other professionals. Third, item (ix) is the broadest and is worded in three limbs: experts or other professionals with at least fifteen years' experience, retired senior bureaucrats, and retired executives. The regulation does not define "senior" or "executive", and the article adds no gloss.
An invented example: Advocate Meena Rao has practised for twelve years. She falls within item (vi). Prakash Sethi, a retired company executive without mediation experience, would rely on item (ix), and the Cell would judge his eligibility on the printed words.
Regulation 4: who is disqualified
Regulation 4(1): personal disqualifications
A person is disqualified from being empanelled if:
- adjudged insolvent;
- criminal charges involving moral turpitude have been framed by a criminal court and are pending against the person;
- convicted by a criminal court of any offence involving moral turpitude; or
- disciplinary proceedings have been initiated by the appropriate disciplinary authority and are pending or have resulted in a punishment.
Item 4 is wide: pending proceedings count, and so does a completed proceeding that ended in punishment. The regulation does not grade the punishment.
Regulation 4(2): disqualification in a particular case
Separately, regulation 4(2) bars from nomination "in that case" a person who is or has been interested in or connected with the subject matter of the consumer dispute, or is related to or has been associated or connected in any manner, including in a professional capacity, with any party or any of their associates, affiliates, promoters, holding companies, subsidiary companies, partners, directors or employees.
This is a conflict-of-interest bar, tied to the dispute. A mediator who is empanelled generally may still be excluded from a particular case. The wording "in any manner, including in a professional capacity" makes the test wide: for example, an advocate who has advised a company in the past is connected with it for this purpose. Disclosure duties of a mediator before a case begins are in regulation 10(3), explained in the article on regulations 5 to 8 and 10, and section 77 of the Act sets the disclosure duty that the regulation adds to.
How these regulations fit with the Mediation Rules
The Mediation Rules say that a panel is recommended by a selection committee of the President and a member of the Commission and list the matters that cannot be referred; they are in the article on rules 1 to 7 of the Mediation Rules. The regulations in this article decide who can be on that panel. For how mediation proceeds once a case is referred, read the article on regulations 11 to 16.
Need help with a consumer mediation matter?
If you are a party who wants to object to a proposed mediator, or a professional who wants to understand whether you qualify for a Cell's panel, a short review of the facts against regulations 3 and 4 is the right first step. Our legal dispute resolution team can help you prepare the objection or the application.
Key takeaways
- Regulation 3 lists nine eligible classes with experience thresholds of ten, five or fifteen years in certain classes.
- Regulation 4(1) disqualifies a person who is insolvent, faces pending criminal charges of moral turpitude, has such a conviction or faces pending or concluded disciplinary punishment.
- Regulation 4(2) bars connected persons from nomination in that dispute.
- "Settlement" in these regulations covers all or some of the issues.
- Regulation 9 on training was amended in 2022 and is not described here.
Read next
- Regulations 5–8 and 10: empanelment, removal, fees and code of conduct
- Regulations 11–16: proceedings, role, confidentiality, immunity and reports
- Rules 1–7 of the Mediation Rules, 2020
- Sections 75–78: mediators, empanelment, nomination, duties and replacement
Disclaimer: Based on the rules, regulations and guidelines named above as published in the Gazette of India or on the CCPA website, with the amending notifications the article names (consulted on 3 October 2026). Later amendments, the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 provisions referred to, State rules and CCPA advisories should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.