(a) Require that the parties be notified in advance that the conference will be conducted in an informal manner and will not use the rules of evidence;
(b) Provide each party with a full opportunity to present the party’s position;
(c) Accommodate safety concerns in conference procedures when safety concerns are identified;
(d) Allow a party’s attorney to be present; and
(e) Notify the parties that if an agreement is not reached the conference officer described in subsection (2) of this section may make a recommendation to the court, but that no party will lose the party’s right to a judicial hearing.
(2) The presiding judge shall appoint a conference officer to hold a conference under this section. The conference officer must have completed training in mediation, child development and domestic violence, as prescribed by the presiding judge or local rules adopted under ORS 3.220, and must be:
(a) An employee of the Judicial Department; or
(b) An attorney or trained mediator appointed by the court in accordance with local rules adopted under ORS 3.220.
(3)(a) If the parties reach an agreement on the contested issues during the conference, the conference officer shall prepare a stipulated order or judgment using forms approved by the State Court Administrator, and:
(A) If a party has an attorney, the party’s attorney shall have the opportunity to review the stipulated order or judgment;
(B) The parties shall sign the stipulated order or judgment; and
(C) The conference officer shall submit the stipulated order or judgment to the court that has authority over the underlying case.
(b) If the parties cannot reach an agreement on all of the contested issues during the conference, the conference officer may do one or both of the following:
(A) Assist the parties in developing a stipulated order or judgment on one or more of the resolved issues.
(B) Make recommendations to the court on the contested issues and, if requested, schedule a court hearing on those issues and notify the parties of the date and time of the hearing.
(4) At a hearing, the court may receive into evidence and consider the recommendation of the conference officer on contested issues but shall assign no specific evidentiary weight to that recommendation.
(5) If mediation has not been waived by the court, a conference under this section is in addition to and not in lieu of mediation.
(6) The conference procedure may not be used in proceedings under ORS 107.700 to 107.735. [2019 c.293 §2]
Note: 107.103 was added to and made a part of ORS chapter 107 by legislative action but was not added to any smaller series therein. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutes for further explanation.