Alternative Dispute Resolution

Alternative Dispute Resolution

There are various ways of settling disputes without using the civil

courts, these are knows as Alternative Dispute Resolution, or ADR

which are used mainly in construction, family, commercial and

employment issues. There are 3 main types of ADR: conciliation,

mediation and arbitration, this essay will explore how they work and

what is involved in each process.

Mediation

A mediator, a neutral third person is appointed to help both parties

reach an agreement, which they will both find acceptable, already we

can see an advantage over court hearings because in court hearing only

one person can win fully, whereas in mediation both parties gain, or

lose less than they would in court. The mediator will try to see

similarities between the wills of each of the parties and use this to

encourage an agreement both the parties will like. In mediation

however, the parties are not controlled, the mediator has no real

power; the parties themselves must make the decision, though advice is

given and accepted freely.

There is a more formal side of mediation known as a Formalised

Settlement Conference. This is sometimes called a 'mini trial', in

which a panel consisting of an executive decision maker from either

side of the case, and a small neutral party which will look at the

position of each side and try to make a settlement.

Mediation is commonly used in commercial cases, with a Centre for

dispute resolution set up in 1991 in which businesses pay a normal fee

of £1000 for a mediator, as oppose to a potential £100,000 for

litigation, however there are downsides, there are still several

cases, around ...

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...tage on time, effort and money.

In a court cases, because the parties do not very often agree with the

decision it becomes a hard thing to force parties to pay damages etc.

Of course all decisions made by a judge in court are legally binding

but it can still be difficult to make a person or party who considers

theirselves innocent to pay for something. This can lead to further

disputes, taking more time and money and making the parties enemies

even moreso, further damaging relations. In ADR both parties respect

the decision and so allthough not legally binding it isn't difficult

to enforce and relations are mainly undamaged.

In evaluation ADR, allthough not allways legally binding is an

important part of the civil legal system, being quicker, cheaper and

lessss confusing for 'lay' people than the courts themselves.