practice of their profession. Some stress that the mediator must help the parties in conflict to articulate their needs and their fears better or, in short, that he or she must help the parties to communicate better Others emphasise that the mediator must help the parties in dispute to understand the strengths and weakness of their positions and interests better and, if requested, predict for them the possible scenarios if the parties do not reach an agreement. Finally, others insist that one of the aims of mediation is to change the quality of the parties interaction, i.e. to transform hostility and bitterness between the parties into constructive interaction. If the parties are parents, the breakdown of their personal relationship as a couple will not lead to an end of their relationship as parents. The best interests of their children will require that the best possible relationship between them as parents is preserved for the future. In all likelihood, these three aspects will be present in the professional activity of the mediator and will be promoted in his or her specific training Mediation will be a structured process carried out by specifically trained professionals, which will be performed according to recognised principles and techniques. These principles, which have been the traditional content of the codes of practice for mediators, have been set out in Recommendation R(98)1 of the Council of Europe issued in 1998 or in the more recent European Code of Conduct for Mediators and the Proposal of Directive for mediation. In this article, i will concentrate on the broader outlines of the situation of family mediation in several European countries according to domestic law and practice. 2. The current state of family mediation in Europe according to national law and practice The Commission on European Family Law(CEFL), a group of family and comparative law experts from most European countries established in 2001, iii[3] published two- in my opinion -very relevant volumes in 2003. These volumes contain the answers given by experts from 22 European countries to a questionnaire of more than 100 questions concerning the grounds for divorce and the problems of maintenance. iv[4 One of the questions of the questionnaire dealt with in Volume I was Are attempts at conciliation, information meetings orpractice of their profession. Some stress that the mediator must help the parties in conflict to articulate their needs and their fears better or, in short, that he or she must help the parties to communicate better. Others emphasise that the mediator must help the parties in dispute to understand the strengths and weakness of their positions and interests better and, if requested, predict for them the possible scenarios if the parties do not reach an agreement. Finally, others insist that one of the aims of mediation is to change the quality of the parties’ interaction, i.e. to transform hostility and bitterness between the parties into constructive interaction. If the parties are parents, the breakdown of their personal relationship as a couple will not lead to an end of their relationship as parents. The best interests of their children will require that the best possible relationship between them as parents is preserved for the future. In all likelihood, these three aspects will be present in the professional activity of the mediator and will be promoted in his or her specific training. Mediation will be a structured process carried out by specifically trained professionals, which will be performed according to recognised principles and techniques. These principles, which have been the traditional content of the Codes of Practice for mediators, have been set out in Recommendation R (98)1 of the Council of Europe issued in 1998 or in the more recent European Code of Conduct for Mediators and the Proposal of Directive for mediation. In this article, I will concentrate on the broader outlines of the situation of family mediation in several European countries according to domestic law and practice. 2. The current state of family mediation in Europe according to national law and practice The Commission on European Family Law (CEFL), a group of family and comparative law experts from most European countries established in 2001,iii[3] published two - in my opinion - very relevant volumes in 2003. These volumes contain the answers given by experts from 22 European countries to a questionnaire of more than 100 questions concerning the grounds for divorce and the problems of maintenance.iv[4] One of the questions of the questionnaire dealt with in Volume 1 was: Are attempts at conciliation, information meetings or