This document discusses alternative dispute resolution (ADR) techniques that can be used to resolve disputes outside of traditional litigation. It describes various ADR options like mediation, arbitration, early neutral evaluation, and summary jury trials. Mediation involves a neutral third party helping the disputing parties find a solution, while arbitration has a neutral party make a binding decision. The document also discusses proactive ADR approaches used to prevent disputes from arising, such as including ADR clauses in contracts. Overall, the summary provides an overview of alternative dispute resolution options and their goals of providing a more efficient alternative to litigation.

1. Chapter 4
Alternative Dispute Resolution
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2. Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Attempts to resolve disagreements by
stepping outside the traditional litigation
process.
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3. Problems with Litigation
• Justice often goes to those who can afford it
– The best attorneys usually cost the most
• Expensive
– Obtaining records, hiring experts, etc.
• Time consuming
– Process involves several steps with potential for
several long delays
• Some jurisdictions require litigants to submit to
hearings before securing a trial date
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4. The ADR Option
• Goal: to be more economical and efficient than
litigation
– Less expensive
– Less time-consuming
• Proactive ADR anticipates and deals with
disputes before they occur
• Even if dispute not resolved, useful for narrowing
issues and evaluating strength of the cases
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5. Shortcomings of ADR
• Justice outside the system might hamper the
development of the law
– Many critical social issues may never reach the
judicial system
• Limited scope
– Constitutional law, civil rights, criminal law should not
be considered for ADR
• Not always more efficient than traditional
system.
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6. ADR Techniques
Mediation
Arbitration
Med-arb
Early neutral
evaluation
Summary
jury trials
Private civil
trials
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7. ADR Techniques
• Mediation
– Parties to a dispute invite a third party (mediator) to
help find a solution to their problem (non-binding)
• Goal of the mediator: convince parties to adjust
or settle their dispute
– suggests solutions that please both sides
– cannot decide what parties will do
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8. ADR Techniques
• Arbitration
– An arbitrator serves like a judge to settle disputes
– Process runs like a trial but with more relaxed
procedure
• Mandatory arbitration
– Some states require arbitration before trial
– Many contracts try to force arbitration to settle
disputes
Court-ordered arbitration in NC
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9. Shortcomings of Arbitration
1. Hearing is run like a trial but without the
safeguards that come with the rules of civil
procedure, discovery, and motion practice
2. Wide discretion granted to arbitrators can
sometimes lead to unreasonable decisions and
unjustifiable awards
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10. ADR Techniques
• Med-arb
– Combines mediation with arbitration
• If after mediation, a dispute is still unsettled,
parties can move to an arbitration hearing
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11. ADR Techniques
• Early neutral evaluation
– Parties permit a referee to assess their case based on
the facts and legal arguments alone
• The evaluator examines the facts and the law
and renders an assessment of legal rights and
amount of reward that should be rendered.
In Mecklenburg County
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12. ADR Techniques
• Summary jury trial
– shortened version of a trial
– conducted in less than a day
– conducted before an actual jury which then renders
an advisory verdict
• Offers litigants a chance to see how a jury would react
• Attorneys can interview jurors after to see why they
reacted that way
• Conference held after to discuss settlement options
In Mecklenburg County
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13. ADR Techniques
• Private civil trial
– parties hire a retired judge or magistrate to hear their
dispute following the same rules used in an official
trial
• Advantages
– parties can hold trial at a time and place of their
choosing
– parties can choose their own judge
In Ohio
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14. Proactive ADR
•
•
•
•
•
Partnering
ADR contract clauses
Settlement week
Negotiated rule making
Science court proposal
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15. Proactive ADR
• Partnering
– establishes supportive relationships among the
parties to a contract to head off disputes before they
occur
• Try to anticipate problems and create solutions
• Best used when a contract involves complex
interrelationships among a wide variety of
different parties
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16. Proactive ADR
• ADR contract clause
– specifies that parties have promised to use an ADR
technique if a dispute arises
• Advantages
– helpful when two or more parties have an extended
affiliation that may involve numerous contracts
– beneficial to those parties with the weakest position
in a contractual relationship
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17. Proactive ADR
• Settlement week
– Five-day period during which a court’s docket
is cleared of all business, except for settlement
hearings
– Cases are matched with mediators and a
schedule is established
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18. Proactive ADR
• Negotiated rule making (reg-neg)
– an agency invites the people and the organizations to
be affected by a new rule to have input into the
writing of that rule
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19. Negotiated Rule Making
• Convenor
– objective outsider who is trained in facilitating the
early stages of the negotiated rule making process
• Convening
– preliminary steps in the negotiated rule making
process
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20. Proactive ADR
• Post-appellate procedures
– involve taking a case that has been rejected or
dismissed by a domestic court to an international
organization
• International arbitration agreement
– involves a pledge to use arbitration should the parties
find themselves in disagreement as to the
enforcement rights under the original contract
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21. Proactive ADR
• Science court
– acts as a forum for disputes involving scientific and
technological controversies
• Judges on the science court are scientists
educated in the areas under investigation,
allowing them to use their expertise
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22. Question?
What occurs whenever individuals attempt to
resolve disagreements by stepping outside the
usual adversarial system?
A. Alternative dispute resolution
B. Substitute resolution
C. Dispute optional resolution
D. Alternative resolution
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23. Question?
What is the process by which the parties to a
dispute invite a third party, known as a
mediator, to help find a solution to their
problem?
A. Arbitration
B. Mediation
C. Negotiation
D. Adjudication
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24. Question?
What is an objective outsider who is trained in
facilitating the early stages of the negotiated
rule making process?
A. Mediator
B. Arbitrator
C. Convenor
D. Adjudicator
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25. Question?
What is the process by which the parties permit a
referee to assess their case based on the facts
and legal arguments alone?
A. Early neutral evaluation
B. Summary jury trial
C. Civil judgment
D. Neutral judgment
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26. Question?
What is the five day period during which a court’s
docket is cleared of all business, except for
settlement hearings?
A. Mediation week
B. Settlement court
C. Settlement week
D. Arbitration week
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27. Question?
Which court acts as a forum for disputes involving
scientific and technological controversies?
A. Technology court
B. Science court
C. Science resolution body
D. Technology appellate board
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