Humboldt berlin strategic litigation 24 06-16 [autosaved]

EU Consumer ADR Law
Good on Paper, but……..?
Presented by
Graham Ross
‘Strategic Litigation’, Humboldt University
Berlin
24th June 2016
Graham Ross - ODR Blog at www.TheMediationRoom.com - @mediationroom

 UK lawyer/mediator
 Written spoken and developed systems in ODR since the last
century
 Member the UK’s Civil Justice Council’s ODR Advisory Group
 Member Civil Justice Councils’ADR Working Party
 Member All Party Parliamentary Group on ADR
 Fellow of the Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution –
UMass (Amherst)
 Head of the European Advisory Board of Modria
Who Am I ?

DISPUTE
AVOIDANCE
ADR/ODR
E-Court
Cour
t
Widening The Court Estate

Take Aways – Part 1
 Mediation is a far superior form of ADR
 New EU consumer redress law has the potential to make mediation
more accessible and more effective
 Technology (ODR) enables mediation to be available at fast speed and
very low cost
 Mediation based ODR delivers economic benefits to business
But the EU only half-baked the legal cake:-
1. By not distinguishing/encouraging mediation over ombudsmen driven
adjudication
2. By making participation in ADR non –binding on traders

The Directive on Alternative Dispute Resolution For
Consumer Disputes (2013/11/EU)
“Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) offers a simple, fast and
low-cost out-of-court solution to disputes between consumers and
traders. However, ADR is not yet sufficiently and consistently
developed across the Union.”
“...ADR should be available for all types of domestic and cross-
border disputes covered by this Directive, ADR procedures should
comply with consistent quality requirements that apply throughout
the Union, and consumers and traders should be aware of the
existence of such procedures.”
EU Has Gifted a Great Opportunity

Article 14
1. Traders established within the Union engaging in online sales or
service contracts, and online marketplaces established within the Union,
shall provide on their websites an electronic link to the ODR
platform. That link shall be easily accessible for consumers.
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the
Council on Online Dispute Resolution for
Consumer Disputes
542/2013

 Important to note that ‘consumer’ cases are not limited in the
EU law to cases of low to modest value.
 Can divert many higher value cases that otherwise might end up
in court.
Good On Paper

Requirements that a competent authority must be satisfied that
the body meets
2. The body—
(a) maintains an up-to-date website which provides the parties
to a domestic dispute or cross-border dispute with information
regarding the alternative dispute resolution procedure operated
by the body;
….......
(c) ensures that its website enables a consumer to file an initial
complaint submission and any necessary supporting
documents online;
…........
(e) enables the exchange of information between the parties
via electronic means or, if a party wishes, by post;
The Alternative Dispute Resolution for Consumer
Disputes (Competent Authorities and Information)
Regulations 2015
SCHEDULE 3

Good On Paper ..But
<EXPLETIVE DELETED> On Grass
Only 5/35 major name e-commerce businesses complied with the new
EU law
But all of the 5 are buried deep in terms and conditions

Good On Paper ..But
<EXPLETIVE DELETED> On Grass
(NO LINK AT ALL):-
T K MAXX
JOHN LEWIS
PC WORLD
MAPLIN
TOYOTA
BUILD A BEAR

And one company that should understand the
gravity of the situation
and really needs a rocket…….

Burying the link
is not ‘easily accessible’

UK APPROVING BODY NOT
COMPLYING?

INFORM
ENCOURAGE
ENFORCE

.

Useful To Quote To Luddites
“It seems certain that there is practically no chance of it becoming a commercial
means of transport,” - The Engineer Magazine
“This has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of
communication. The device is inherently of no value to us” - Western Union
memo 1878
“When the Paris Exhibition [of 1878] closes, no more will be heard of it”-Oxford
Professor Erasmus Wilson
“The horse is here to stay but this is only a novelty – a fad” -President of
Michigan Savings Bank advising Henry Ford’s lawyer
“It won’t be able to hold on to any market it captures after the first six months.
People will soon get tired of staring at it” -Darryl Zanuck
“There is no reason anyone would want one in their home.” -Ken Oslon,
Founder/President of Digital Equipment
“The Internet is no place to conduct litigation or arbitration”

EU Consumer ADR Law
Good on Paper, but……..
<expletive deleted> on Grass
Presented by
Graham Ross
‘Strategic Litigation’, Humboldt University
Berlin
24th June 2016

Humboldt berlin strategic litigation 24 06-16 [autosaved]

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