Alternative Dispute Resolution
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)- a classification of methods of resolving disputes outside the court process; these include:
● Negotiation
● Arbitration
● Mediation
-The purposes of ADR include reducing the costs of expensive litigation, eliminating unnecessary delays of lengthy litigation, and
affording parties a degree of privacy not generally available once a lawsuit is filed.
● These get the trial over faster
● Neither parties are "winning" or "losing"; both parties are not 100% happy at the end
● Go behind closed doors, work out a settlement, come out with it done
Binding ADR:
● Parties may choose to engage in binding ADR and both relinquish rights to settle the matter in court
● If you've ever signed a licensing agreement for any kind of intellectual property (video game or computer program), you
probably agreed to binding alternative dispute resolution and have waived rights to file a lawsuit related to that I.P.
● Binding ADR is usually in the form of arbitration
Non-Binding ADR:
● An effort by both parties to resolve the dispute without going to court, but if a resolution is not successfully reached, then
neither party is foreclosed from filing suit
● Occasionally, courts in litigation that they anticipate to by lengthy will order the parties to participate in non-binding ADR in th
hope that forcing them to negotiate will settle all or some of the issues
● One example of non-binding ADR is mediation
● The parties can decide they can't work it out and go back to court
● Sometimes a court forces parties into an ADR, and at least some of the issues will be settled
Arbitration- an out of court hearing before a neutral party who listens to 2 or more disputing parties and renders a decision resolving
the dispute
● Arbitrator- the person who presides over the process
● Binding arbitration results in an arbitration award
● Binding Arbitration- where the parties have agreed to abide by the decision of the arbitrator
● The actual process is similarly subject to agreement by the parties but tends to resemble a trial, but less formal
Mediation- an informal, out-of-court dispute resolution process; a mediator assists the parties in reaching an agreement
● Mediation is generally non-binding, meaning the mediator cannot issue an order that resolves the case- they merely assists th
parties in coming to an agreement
● Most commonly, mediators will put the parties in different rooms, hear each side's case, and then begin to play "devil's
advocate", informing each side of the weaknesses of its case in a neutral way. This process can help the parties to come to ter
with the likelihood that they will be able to convince a judge or jury of the merits of their case
● The arbitrators and mediators are usually very experienced litigators or former judges.
● National associations that credential arbitrators and mediators exist and parties will typically choose an arbitrator or mediator
from those lists
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)- a classification of methods of resolving disputes outside the court process; these include:
● Negotiation
● Arbitration
● Mediation
-The purposes of ADR include reducing the costs of expensive litigation, eliminating unnecessary delays of lengthy litigation, and
affording parties a degree of privacy not generally available once a lawsuit is filed.
● These get the trial over faster
● Neither parties are "winning" or "losing"; both parties are not 100% happy at the end
● Go behind closed doors, work out a settlement, come out with it done
Binding ADR:
● Parties may choose to engage in binding ADR and both relinquish rights to settle the matter in court
● If you've ever signed a licensing agreement for any kind of intellectual property (video game or computer program), you
probably agreed to binding alternative dispute resolution and have waived rights to file a lawsuit related to that I.P.
● Binding ADR is usually in the form of arbitration
Non-Binding ADR:
● An effort by both parties to resolve the dispute without going to court, but if a resolution is not successfully reached, then
neither party is foreclosed from filing suit
● Occasionally, courts in litigation that they anticipate to by lengthy will order the parties to participate in non-binding ADR in th
hope that forcing them to negotiate will settle all or some of the issues
● One example of non-binding ADR is mediation
● The parties can decide they can't work it out and go back to court
● Sometimes a court forces parties into an ADR, and at least some of the issues will be settled
Arbitration- an out of court hearing before a neutral party who listens to 2 or more disputing parties and renders a decision resolving
the dispute
● Arbitrator- the person who presides over the process
● Binding arbitration results in an arbitration award
● Binding Arbitration- where the parties have agreed to abide by the decision of the arbitrator
● The actual process is similarly subject to agreement by the parties but tends to resemble a trial, but less formal
Mediation- an informal, out-of-court dispute resolution process; a mediator assists the parties in reaching an agreement
● Mediation is generally non-binding, meaning the mediator cannot issue an order that resolves the case- they merely assists th
parties in coming to an agreement
● Most commonly, mediators will put the parties in different rooms, hear each side's case, and then begin to play "devil's
advocate", informing each side of the weaknesses of its case in a neutral way. This process can help the parties to come to ter
with the likelihood that they will be able to convince a judge or jury of the merits of their case
● The arbitrators and mediators are usually very experienced litigators or former judges.
● National associations that credential arbitrators and mediators exist and parties will typically choose an arbitrator or mediator
from those lists
