Models of Ombudsmen

Abstract

In this chapter, I discuss the implementation of the consumer ADR directive in national legal spaces. This legislation is very recent and, most systems and their users still need to become aware of, and accustomed to, this developing regime. I argue that for ombudsmen to be accepted and trusted as part of a system of justice, they have to be understood in their national context. In so doing, I discuss the country case studies and highlight similarities and differences in the development of ADR bodies. I discuss national and cultural distinctions in the legal systems, as well as those between public and private ombudsmen. Every member state has its own traditions and legal systems that have formed their populations’ approaches to disputes, attitudes to institutions and expectations of those institutions. I argue that the relationships we form with authorities influence the relationships discussed in this chapter: specifically, those between the citizen and the state and those between consumers and a business. These relationships are established and develop through our legal culture.