Dispute Resolution: Protecting the Process, Proving the Deal: Settlement Privilege After Mainprize
Join Neil McPhee for a focused lunchtime session on settlement privilege following the recent decision in Mainprize v Mainprize, 2026 SKKB 54. This session will examine the scope of confidentiality in mediation sessions, the statutory limits on admissibility under The King’s Bench Act, and the practical risks that arise when parties leave mediation believing they have reached an agreement without signed minutes of settlement.
Neil will address the interaction between common law settlement privilege, the proof-of-agreement exception, statutory mediation confidentiality, and the enforceability of alleged settlements reached during mediation or pre-trial conferences.
What this session will cover
- Settlement privilege fundamentals: the purpose and scope of without prejudice protection in settlement discussions.
- The Mainprize decision: how the court treated affidavit evidence, mediation-room communications, and photographs of alleged settlement terms.
- Mandatory mediation confidentiality: the statutory inadmissibility rule under s. 7-2 of The King’s Bench Act.
- Proof of agreement exception: when settlement communications may be admissible to prove a concluded agreement, and how Mainprize limits that analysis in the mediation context.
Date/Time: Thursday, May 14, 2026 |12:00 - 1:00 pm (SK) | Zoom
Speaker: Neil McPhee, Scharfstein LLP
Section Chair: Neil McPhee, Scharfstein LLP
Cost: Free for CBA Members
This program qualifies for 1.0 CPD hours under the Law Society of Saskatchewan Continuing Professional Development Policy.
This will be a zoom webinar so you can join via your computer or phone. We will provide instructions when you register of how to access Zoom if you are not familiar with this format.
