Their scholarly work for the project examined the current legal structure and effectiveness of existing mediation legislation, questions of quality and fairness in mediation, as well as the political environment in which uniform or model legislation operates. See Frank E.A. Sander, Introduction to Symposium on Drafting a Uniform/Model Mediation Act, 13 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol. 791 (1998). Much of this work was published as a law review symposium issue. See Symposium on Drafting a Uniform/Model Mediation Act, 13 Ohio St. J. Disp. Resol. 787 (1998).

Finally, observers from a vast array of mediation professional and provider organizations also provided extensive suggestions to the Drafting Committees, including: the Association for Conflict Resolution (formerly the Society of Professionals in Dispute Resolution, Academy of Family Mediators and CRE/Net), National Council of Dispute Resolution Organizations, American Arbitration Association, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services, Inc. (JAMS), CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution, International Academy of Mediators, National Association for Community Mediation, and the California Dispute Resolution Council. Other official observers to the Drafting Committees included: the American Bar Association Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice, American Bar Association Section of Litigation, American Bar Association Senior Lawyers Division, American Bar Association Section of Torts and Insurance Practice, American Trial Lawyers Association, Equal Employment Advisory Council, National Association of District Attorneys, and the Society of Professional Journalists.

Similarly, the Act also received substantive comments from several state and local Bar Associations, generally working through their ADR committees, including: the Alameda County Bar Association, the Beverly Hills Bar Association, the State Bar of