Resolving a dispute
Resolving a Civil or Commercial Dispute
Going to court - litigation - is the traditional way of resolving a dispute.
However, whilst it provides a final and binding way of settling a dispute, it suffers a number of weaknesses. For example, it is very formal and inflexible, it forces one side to win at the expense of the other, and it can be expensive.
That is why more and more disputes are being settled by action outside the courts - using arbitration and what are known as Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods.
The key advantages of using alternative dispute resolution methods are:
- details of the dispute may be kept confidential
- the methods involved are more flexible than litigation
- final resolution can be more flexible and tailored to suit the specific case, rather than being limited to narrow application of the law
- faster resolution of the dispute
- the parties are more likely to accept the solution as they keep control over the dispute themselves
- the relationship between the parties is maintained, as there is no outright winner or loser
- less expensive than litigation
Arbitration is a well-established ADR method, even though it does share certain procedural similarities to litigation.
Negotiation, mediation and conciliation are the main ADR methods that involve the parties themselves working to reach a consensus.
Other significant ADR methods include Adjudication, Expert Determination, and Early Neutral Evaluation.
Last Updated: 28 March 2009