Jamie Louise Bartlam
The process where the parties in a dispute come to a compromise without going to court.
Why do people use ADR instead of the civil courts?
- Going to court is expensive and time consuming
- ADR maintains relationships as it involves compromise and avoids argument
- ADR is private
Negotiation
•The Simplest form of ADR.
•The parties in a dispute can negotiate a solution themselves
•It is private, fast and cheap
•If the clients cannot reach a settlement themselves - Solicitors often negotiate on
their clients behalf resulting in out of court settlements
•Not legally binding on the parties – any money promised does not legally have to
be paid
Mediation
•Where a neutral person (mediator) helps the parties to reach a compromise
•The mediator acts as a facilitator taking offers between the parties – but doesn’t
offer their own opinion
•Mediation works best when there is some chance that parties will cooperate
•Many companies save £1,000s in legal fees using Mediation services.
•There are a number of organisations that offer mediation services – the main one
is the Centre For Dispute Resolution – 80% of disputes they deal with are settled
without the need for court action
•Mediation is not legally binding and there is no guarantee that a settlement will be
reached.
•This means that you still have to use the courts, so in effect failure at the
mediation stage can result in extra delays and extra costs.
Conciliation
•Similar to mediation – neutral third party helps to resolve the dispute
•However the conciliator plays a more active role in the process
•They will suggest ways in which a compromise could be reached
•Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) is used by employers and
Trade Unions to settle disputes before (and sometimes during) industrial action
takes place.
•ACAS offers conciliation to both sides in unfair dismissals claims before the
claim can be taken to an employment tribunal
•60% of such claims are settled this way
•Conciliation is not legally binding on parties
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