4. a. (1) A court may order mediation whenever a homeowner-borrower files an answer to a foreclosure complaint.
(2) Alternatively, the homeowner-borrower may initiate mediation in accordance with court rules. The courts shall provide the homeowner-borrower no less than 60 days following receipt of the foreclosure complaint and summons to initiate mediation.
b. The homeowner-borrower may not participate in mediation unless the certification document required pursuant to section 5 of P.L.2019, c.64 (C.2A:50-78) is submitted to the court and signed by a trained foreclosure prevention and default mitigation counselor, verifying that the homeowner-borrower is cooperating with the counselor.
c. The homeowner-borrower shall not be required to pay any fees to participate in the mediation program.